A statewide mask mandate remains an important part of preventing the spread of coronavirus, although Gov. Mark Gordon declined to issue such an order, according to the director of the Wyoming Hospital Association.
In an email to Cowboy State Daily, WHA Director Eric Boley reiterated that the organization still feels masks are “super important to bending the curve and curbing the outbreak.”
“It is a simple thing that allows us to help ourselves and also shows that we want to help others,” Boley said to Cowboy State Daily. “There are many counties that will not impose a mask mandate on their own and we feel that a statewide mandate is the only way to ensure that there is a directive across the entire state.”
Earlier this month, the WHA, the Wyoming Medical Society and the state’s county health officers signed a letter to Gordon, asking him to implement a statewide mask mandate.
Gordon has hesitated to do so, and avoided doing just that in his recent health orders, which limited the number of people in crowds, both in and outside.
Since Gordon hasn’t passed a statewide order, many counties have decided to do it themselves, with counties like Teton, Laramie, Carbon Sublette passing mandates in recent weeks.
‘We realize enforcement may be difficult but in an attempt to help keep businesses open, to keep people safer and healthier and to ease the strain on our healthcare providers and facilities we would really like to see a statewide directive,” Boley said.
A call placed to the Wyoming Medical Society wasn’t answered, and the group’s spokeswoman was out of the office until Monday.
