Coronavirus: in Texas, the mask is no longer forgotten …

The Governor of Texas Gregg Abbott, on Tuesday lifted the state-level order to wear a mask to protect against covid-19, despite warnings from medical authorities amid the pandemic. At a Lubbock press conference, Abbott said that from March 10, all establishments will be able to open without any restrictions.

“Too many Texans have been shut out of employment opportunities. Too many small business owners have suffered to pay their bills. This must stop. It’s time to open up Texas 100%,” Abbott said. “Besides,” he added, “I’m ending the mask order.”

Texas, the second most populous state in the United States – with 30 million people – is the third district, behind New York and California, with the highest number of deaths from the pandemic: 40,000 deaths from the coronavirus.

Abbott justified his decision with the correct vaccination rate and noted that by next week more than 7 million vaccines will have been administered. However, he asked for “personal responsibility” and to follow medical advice.

Texas, the second most populous state in the United States with 30 million people, is the third, behind New York and California, with the highest number of deaths from the pandemic with more than 40,000 dead. The mask order had been in effect in the state for 8 months.

Texas thus joins twelve other states, out of the 50 in the United States, which did not have a mandatory mask use mandate, such as Florida or Arizona.

If in recent days the daily average of new cases has notably fallen in the United States, to less than 70,000 per day, against nearly 300,000 at the start of the year, the authorities continue to warn of the existing danger, in particular in due to the appearance of new variants of the virus.

“Now is not the time to relax restrictions. Although we have seen a sharp drop in cases and hospital admissions over the past six weeks, these drops come after the biggest spike we have ever seen. recorded in the pandemic, “said Rochelle Walensky, director. From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) at a press conference Friday.

The United States is the country with the highest infections in the world: it already has more than 28.5 million cases and more than 515,000 deaths, according to the latest count from Johns Hopkins University.