As Jackson's mayor held a downtown news conference last week declaring a new citywide mask mandate, a few blocks away inside the Mississippi Capitol, numerous lawmakers and other officials opted not to wear one.
"You can look around here right now, and see people walking around with no masks," a masked Rep. Omeria Scott said Tuesday, sitting at her desk on the House floor.
The Democrat from Laurel, a member of the public health committee, noted lots of recent "chatter" on social media critical of lawmakers and other public officials for not wearing masks — even as state health leaders urge their use to slow surging coronavirus infections. Gov. Tate Reeves has also faced scrutiny for going maskless.
Few senators or attendees wore masks at a recent Senate Public Health Committee meeting, though chairs were spaced out for audience members to social distance. At a House Rules Committee meeting, about half of the lawmakers and a third of the attendees who packed shoulder-to-shoulder in the small room went without face coverings.
Reeves blames protests for virus uptick: State health officer says otherwise
On the House and Senate floors — where desks are arranged tightly together — many lawmakers wore masks sporadically or not at all. They pulled them aside to whisper to colleagues, or sported them as permanent fixtures over their chins.
"You can't lead from behind," Scott said. "We are supposed to be leaders."
While lawmakers departed the Capitol on Wednesday night, they are expected to return in coming weeks to address COVID-19 funding issues. At least two Capitol workers and a police officer have tested positive for the virus in recent weeks. And over the weekend, a Department of Health spokeswoman said the agency is aware of several ill and positive cases among House members, though she did not have a specific number.
One of those positives is Rep. Bo Brown, D-Jackson, who confirmed Friday he has the virus. The 70-year-old received a positive result from a test about a week ago, and had worked at the Capitol through Wednesday. Like Brown, dozens of the state's 174 lawmakers are over the age of 65, putting them especially at risk from the coronavirus.
"I guess the question is, where did it originate from?" said Brown, who also tested for COVID-19 about three weeks ago and turned up negative. "A lot of folks down there didn't wear the mask. I religiously wore mine, at all times. And also I wore gloves."
On Sunday, House Speaker Philip Gunn, R-Clinton, confirmed in a Facebook video that he also has the virus.
"Last week I was in close proximity with one of the individuals who has tested positive so I felt like I needed to go get myself tested just because I had been with this person," said Gunn, 57. "This morning, it was revealed that I tested positive for COVID-19."
Gunn said that he has informed Mississippi House members that he has been in close proximity with and will self quarantine for 14 days.
Strict safety precautions at the Capitol became more relaxed as the session wore on and prominent issues such as the state flag grabbed lawmakers' attention. Aggressive cleaning and daily temperature checks at entrances continued, however.
On Wednesday, Sen. Joey Fillingane, R-Sumrall, and Sen. Sally Doty, R-Brookhaven, discussed a virus-related bill on the Senate floor, noting how people with the virus may be without symptoms — including a fever — yet still spread it to others.
"That's why we're trying to get out of here today," said Doty, without a mask.
'I know it saves lives'
Jackson's mask order by Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba, which took effect Thursday, follows similar mandates in Tupelo, Oxford and many other cities and states around the country.
It follows spiking case counts and rising hospitalizations in Mississippi, with officials warning the health care system could soon be overwhelmed. The state recorded its second-highest daily tally of new cases on Saturday with 990.
More: Few Mississippians are wearing masks. Will it cause a spike in coronavirus cases?
A growing body of research shows most people are infected from close-up interactions with others, often in confined or poorly ventilated rooms. Speaking and breathing spew both large and small droplets that scientists believe transmit the virus into another person's eyes, nose or mouth. But if the infected person is wearing a mask, it's less likely those infected droplets can escape and travel through the air.
Sen. John Horhn, D-Jackson — who was wearing a mask and has been seen previously wearing a plastic face shield — said Lumumba made the right decision with his mask order, given "incontrovertible proof" that face coverings help prevent coronavirus infections. He noted that while many lawmakers do wear masks, "there's not consistency."
"We reflect society," Horhn said. "Society is inconsistent in how it's addressing the wearing of masks."
But many people — from Facebook commenters to State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs — argue state officials should be modeling the behavior they want residents to adopt in order to slow the spread.
"Until leaders across the state, at the state level, at the local level, law enforcement — the people we really depend on to be our examples — embrace and understand, it's going to be an untenable mandate," Dobbs said at a recent news conference, after the state recorded nearly 1,100 new cases in one day. He and Dr. Paul Byers, the state epidemiologist, wore masks as they answered reporters' questions.
"I think that we as leaders must be an example, that they see us doing it, then other people will do it," said Rep. Orlando Paden, D-Clarksdale, a member of the House public health committee. "You know, it's uncomfortable for me to wear a mask, but I know it saves lives, so I want to be a part of that."
Reeves skips mask at funeral, Senate
Reeves has faced criticism on social media and questions from reporters over skipping a mask while shaking hands and hugging attendees of a funeral for Simpson County Deputy Sheriff James Blair.
Also going maskless at the funeral, attended by several hundred people, were U.S. Rep. Michael Guest Southern District of Mississippi U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst.
Virus outbreaks in Mississippi and elsewhere have been tied to funerals.
Earlier the same day of the funeral, June 17, Reeves posted on social media about how he was worried people were "losing interest in the effort to keep each other safe" as virus cases rose. He later said the mask was in his pocket and "I should have put it on." He added he tried to social distance.
More: Science can tell us why wearing face masks is essential
"This gentleman was gunned down in the line of duty and I believe it's my job, and it's a part of my job that I will respect and I honor and I will always do to pay my respects to this individual and his family," Reeves said, adding to reporters: "If y'all want to shame me for the way that I handled it, go for it. That's part of your job."
Reeves also was asked in May about not wearing a mask during a visit to the Senate, where he presided for eight years as lieutenant governor. A photo showed him chatting with Hosemann — who was wearing a mask.
“I probably should have had on a mask. It is not mandated. It is not as if it is a mandate, but it certainly is more responsible," Reeves later said. "Those of us in the public sector, in government, we have to take some risks, but no doubt I usually have a mask with me and I probably should have had it on (while) on the floor."
Since then, Reeves and Dobbs have become increasingly vocal about masks at their frequent televised press briefings, pleading with Mississippians to wear them and to avoid crowds as cases rise.
For weeks, Dobbs has worn one as he walked into the news conference. On Wednesday, so did Reeves. But the night before, as Reeves signed legislation to change the state flag, he was flanked closely by Gunn, Hosemann and other leaders. None wore masks.
At the news conference, Reeves announced he was pausing the state's reopening process, and warned virus patients could soon overwhelm hospitals.
"This is not a hoax," Reeves said of the virus. "It is a danger. It is an imminent threat to all of us."
No statewide mask mandate — yet
But Reeves does not appear ready yet to mandate mask use around the state, or reinstate stay-at-home restrictions, saying the state needs more "cooperation" with guidelines by residents, not more mandates.
Numerous other states are now pausing reopening, issuing new restrictions or requiring masks as cases surge around the U.S. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a mask mandate on Thursday, while California again shuttered restaurants and other businesses in 19 counties. A recent Health Affairs study found states that mandated masks saw greater decreases in virus growth than those that didn't.
"I would take nothing off the table, I'm not taking a statewide order off the table at this time," Reeves said Wednesday. "But as we look at the number of new cases, looking at a county-by-county basis, it is more likely we will see addition measures, and more strict measures, on a county-by county-basis."
More: Jackson's new mask mandate could result in fines, business closures
Lumumba said he believes a statewide mask mandate would be helpful, especially given "interconnected communities" in the Jackson metro area. The city's new requirement covers most public places, both inside buildings and outdoors.
"We know that many of those individuals work in the city of Jackson and go back to their homes," he said. "So, I would call on the state leadership to take a look at a more universal policy that benefits us all."
Horhn, the state senator, agreed: "People respect the rule of law. If the governor were to say, 'Wear a mask,' more people would wear a mask."
Contact Luke Ramseth at 601-961-7050 or lramseth@gannett.com. Follow @lramseth on Twitter.
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