Thursday July 23, 2020
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz wore his buffalo plaid cloth mask during questions at a press conference to announce statewide mask mandate Wednesday, July 22, 2020, to help slow the spread of COVID-19. (Anthony Souffle/Star Tribune via AP) less
Minneapolis (HOL) - Minnesota's Governor Tim Walz on Wednesday ordered all state residents to wear face masks in all indoor public spaces in a bid to slow the curb of COVID-19.
In doing so, Minnesota joins more 29 states that mandate face masks or coverings.
The directive also orders residents to cover the faces outdoors when social distancing may be futile.
The new rules take effect on Saturday.
"If we can get a 90 to 95% compliance, which we've seen the science shows, we can reduce the infection rates dramatically, which slows that spread and breaks that chain," Walz said. "This is the way, the cheapest, the most effective way for us to open up our businesses, for us to get our kids back in school, for us to keep our grandparents healthy and for us to get back that life that we all miss so much."
Individuals who breach the order can be fined up to $100, while failure to comply for businesses can result in a fine of up to $1000.
Walz added that the purpose of the fines was not to criminalize residents but to educate them and get them to "buy into this".
The decision comes as the debate about wearing masks continues to be politicized throughout the U.S. with Democrats pushing for masks while Republicans - citing personal liberty - are pushing back against mandatory masks.
Dr Robert Kahn, a professor at the University of St. Thomas, believes that 80% of Democrats wear masks compared to only 50% of Republicans. A separate study from the University of Chicago revealed similar numbers but recorded Trump supporters as only wearing masks only 39% of the time.
President Donald Trump, who has long been reluctant to wear face masks in public, also gave his most robust backing to face coverings since the pandemic first broke.
"We are asking everybody, when you are not able to socially distance, wear a mask," Trump said at a White House briefing. "Whether you like the mask or not, they have an impact."
Governor Walz said during his press conference on Tuesday that he hopes his republican counterparts don't flout his mask ordinance if they want to slow the infection rate.
"The simplest thing we can do to get back in school the simplest thing we can do to open up and make sure our businesses remain open like they are, and the simplest thing Republicans can do to make sure I don't have to take executive actions around the pandemic is to wear a mask," Walz said in a news conference Tuesday.