Cities and Counties Are Again Prohibited from Having Mask Mandates
On Friday morning (without consulting county health departments or the hospitals that have been caring for the more than 16,000 persons who have died from COVID-19) Governor Ducey & Director Christ rescinded all remaining COVID-19 mitigation measures in Arizona.
It’s officially a free-for-all in Arizona now. Executive Order 2021-06 eliminated several executive orders and with them all remaining required mitigation measures.
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Cities and counties are again prohibited from having mask mandates. They said in the press release that the mandates are being phased out. They are not. The mandates are officially gone and cities or counties cannot enforce them.
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Events of more than 50 people, including youth sports and concerts, DBacks and Suns games etc. will no longer need approval from local governments. Owners can do what they wish.
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All of the formerly “required” COVID-19 mitigation requirements for businesses are now just recommendations. However, there was virtually no enforcement of them. In effect, those “requirements” were really just recommendations anyway.
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Bars can now officially resume all regular operations, although most have been doing so for many months now with impunity.
Other former Executive Orders that were rescinded include implementing safety protocols like working from home, monitoring employees for sickness and providing employees with PPE, and requiring the ADHS to implement statewide contact tracing.
BARS, RESTAURANTS & NIGHTCLUBS
So what is he real impact of his decisions today? In terms of the bars, restaurants and nightclubs that are so efficient at spreading the virus – really nothing. Why, you ask?
Because those mitigation ‘requirements’ were just on paper anyway. They were never enforced by the ADHS and for all practical purposes never really existed. Businesses have been and will continue to do what they think their customers expect. They have known for many months that they don’t actually have to follow the mitigation measures ‘required’ by ADHS- because there has never been any enforcement.
Among the tens of thousands of bars, restaurants, and nightclubs that have been violating the ADHS capacity limits and other mitigation ‘requirements’ over the last 6 months there have been less than 20 enforcement actions (and those only happened when videos went viral on Twitter).
Basically, there never have been any enforced limits in Arizona since summer. The Governor’s EO makes it sound like he and she are rescinding requirements, when for all practical matters, they never did exist. At least Director Christ and Governor Ducey are finally being honest that there aren’t any required mitigation in bars, restaurants and nightclubs.
MASKS
Masks are another matter. There’s no doubt that fewer persons will wear masks in public places now. Mask wearing has normalized somewhat and so some people will keep wearing masks, but they will likely be worn by fewer people now. This will spread the virus more readily.
The decision to prohibit local mandates will cause an increase in spread of the virus. This will be a direct result of the decisions jointly made Friday by the Governor and Director.