On Tuesday, March 2, 2021, Mississippi and Texas joined the states which have no mask mandates. They each announced that businesses will be allowed to reopen to full capacity [1].
Texas
Texas Governor Abbott made the announcement during a Lubbock Chamber of Commerce meeting. At this meeting, he issued an executive order rescinding most of the earlier mask mandate orders. He said,
Too many Texans have been sidelined from employment opportunities. Too many small business owners have struggled to pay their bills. This must end [2].
Abbott is removing governmental control by removing the mandates. Residents still need to practice good health measures. The Governor made it clear that,
Under no circumstance can a county judge put anybody in jail for following COVID orders, and no penalties can be imposed for failing to wear a face mask [3].
Abbott spelled it out by saying,
People and businesses don’t need the state to tell them how to operate [4].
Mississippi
Mississippi Governor Reeves announced the end to all county mask mandates. He went on to announce that businesses can reopen at 100% capacity. Reeves went on to say,
Our hospitalizations and case numbers have plummeted, and the vaccine is being rapidly distributed [5].
Governor Reeves lifted the mask mandate because no county in the state met the
original criteria for a mask mandate [6].
Mississippi and Texas join Alabama, Montana, and Iowa. Currently, only 34 states require face masks. You can check here for each state’s mandates.
Notes:
- ^https://www.christianheadlines.com/contributors/milton-quintanilla/texas-mississippi-governors-rescind-mask-mandates-ease-covid-19-restrictions.html (go back ↩)
- ^https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/02/us/texas-governor-mask-mandate/index.html (go back ↩)
- ^https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-mocks-texas-and-mississippi-for-reopening-dropping-mask-mandates-neanderthal-thinking (go back ↩)
- ^https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/02/us/texas-governor-mask-mandate/index.html (go back ↩)
- ^https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/02/us/texas-governor-mask-mandate/index.html (go back ↩)
- ^https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-mocks-texas-and-mississippi-for-reopening-dropping-mask-mandates-neanderthal-thinking (go back ↩)
