States with statewide mask mandates in place are reporting higher coronavirus cases per capita than Florida, a target of the establishment media throughout the Chinese coronavirus pandemic.
Illinois is just one of a handful of states that has a mask mandate in place. Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) reinstituted the mandate in late August, which requires all Illinois residents older than two to wear a mask in indoor settings, regardless of vaccination status. However, that has not seemed to stop the virus from spreading.
According to the New York Times’ coronavirus tracker, Illinois is reporting a daily average of 4,661 cases, or 37 per 100,000. That reflects an increase of 45 percent over the last two weeks.
While Oregon lifted its controversial outdoor mask mandate this week, it still has an indoor requirement in place. Still, it is reporting a daily average of 806 cases, or 19 per capita.
In October, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s (D) administration in New Mexico extended the statewide mask mandate. Yet, as of Saturday, it reported a daily average of 1,406 cases, or 67 per capita, representing an increase of five percent in the last two weeks.
Other states that have a mask mandate in place include Nevada, which is reporting a daily average of 21 cases per 100,000, and Washington, which is reporting a daily average of 18 cases per 100,000.
Hawaii is the only state with a mask mandate in place that comes close to Florida, reporting a daily average of seven cases per 100,000. Florida is still the lowest in the nation, reporting 6 per 100,000.
The Sunshine State never once had a statewide mask mandate in place.
“They should not be mandated. No government entity should force you to do that. That is your choice. If that’s something you believe provides you protection, no one is going to say anything to you. But that should not, absolutely not, be mandated,” Gov. DeSantis said in August, defending his long-held belief and noting that “even some of these experts now are acknowledging, with an aerosolized virus, a piece of cloth is not going to stop the aerosols.”
“I leave that [masking] to people to make their own judgments. If they feel comfortable with that, do it. But absolutely not should that be mandated in any way,” he emphasized.
