Biden wants to see mandatory masks in all 50 states. These are the ones who don’t need it



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Most states already have some type of mask mandate, but some don’t have a statewide rule – either leaving it as a recommendation or empowering local officials.

Here are the states with no statewide mask requirement.

Alaska does not require the use of masks, does not limit group size or business operations. All the state is doing is encouraging Alaskans to do their part to limit the spread of Covid-19, advising residents to practice social distancing and wear a mask, without any warrant.
The mayor of Anchorage, Alaska, however, signed an ordinance requiring people to wear face masks in public.

Arizona

Gov. Doug Ducey, a Republican, allows individual counties to mandate a mask, but has no statewide initiative. Scottsdale was the first to make masks mandatory starting June 19. Other large municipalities with requirements include Phoenix, Tucson, and Flagstaff.

Florida

There is no statewide mask requirement, but some local municipalities have their own mandates.

Georgia

Statewide, masks are required for some essential workers, including restaurant and personal care workers.

Meanwhile, several counties and cities have mask warrants.

Idaho

The state does not have a statewide requirement, but several local municipalities do, including Boise.

Iowa

The state does not have a statewide requirement, but several local municipalities do.

Mississippi

On September 4, Gov. Tate Reeves, a Republican, lifted the requirement to cover the face of the state.

Just over a month later and amid the growing number of cases, Reeves signed an executive order requiring face masks in counties with a higher number of Covid-19 cases. But that order expires on Wednesday.

Missouri

The state does not have a statewide requirement, but several local municipalities do.

Nebraska

There is no statewide mandate, but clients and staff at barber shops, barbershops, tattoo parlors and massage parlors must wear masks, as part current requirements of directed health measurement.

North Dakota

The state does not have a statewide requirement, but at least one local municipality, Fargo, does.

Oklahoma

Oklahoma City City Council voted at a special meeting in July to approve an emergency public safety order requiring face coverings in indoor public places in Oklahoma City.

Caroline from the south

Several counties and cities, including Charleston and Columbia, have mask warrants.

South Dakota

Governor Kristi Noem, a Republican, has taken a hands-off approach to Covid-19. In October, she wrote in an op-ed that the government should not impose a mask requirement.

“As I said before, if people want to wear a mask, they should be free to do so,” she wrote. Likewise, those who do not want to wear a mask should not be ashamed to wear one.

South Dakota is second – after North Dakota – in the number of coronavirus cases per 100,000 population.

Tennessee

While there is no statewide mandate, Gov. Bill Lee, a Republican, signed an executive order giving mayors of 89 counties the power to issue mask requirements.

Wyoming

While there is no statewide mandate, Laramie County, home to the capital Cheyenne, has a mask requirement that went into effect on November 1. However, according to CNN affiliate KGWN, the county attorney’s office said warrant violations would not be prosecuted.

Masks are not a political statement, says Biden

In a speech on Monday, Biden pleaded with Americans to stop politicizing masks and social distancing.

“Please, I beg you, wear a mask,” the president-elect said. “Do it for yourself, do it for your neighbor. A mask is not a political statement but it is a way to start bringing the country together.”

During the campaign, Biden spoke about his plan to issue a nationwide mask warrant. This could be challenged in court, however, and in October Biden said he would go to every governor and urge them to issue mask warrants.

“And if they refuse, I will go to the mayors and the county leaders and I will put in place local masking requirements all over the country,” he said.

Since the virus is primarily airborne, face masks are the most effective way to stop the person-to-person spread of Covid-19, studies have shown.

“Wearing face masks in public is the most effective way to prevent human-to-human transmission, and this inexpensive practice, combined with simultaneous social distancing, quarantine, and contact tracing, represents the opportunity. most likely fight to end the Covid-19 pandemic, before a vaccine is developed, ”researchers from Texas and California wrote in June.

Sarah Mucha of CNN contributed to this report.

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