Here’s what President Biden’s federal mask mandate means to you

The day after being sworn in as the 46th president of the United States, Joe Biden signed executive orders determining the use of masks on federal properties, airports and airplanes, buses and trains as part of his plan to combat the coronavirus pandemic that killed more than 400,000 people in the United States.

Biden’s focus on the importance of wearing a mask to prevent the spread of COVID-19 marks a significant break with the Trump administration, which grossly managed the pandemic and downplayed the effectiveness of the act, against advice from the CDC, scientists and public health officials.

Biden does not appear to have the legal authority to implement a national mandate that would require all Americans to wear masks at all times, according to CNN. It is up to state and local authorities to dictate mask requirements for residents.

However, as part of his “100 Days Masking Challenge”, Biden signed two executive orders forcing the use of a mask: one for federally controlled land and buildings and one for public transportation and ports of entry to the United States.

Federal and contract workers include members of the National Guard and the armed forces, according to the order. Federal buildings include federal courts, post offices, agencies and state capitols across the country. The mandate also applies to national parks and federal monuments.

“This executive action will direct agencies to take steps to demand compliance with CDC guidelines on the use of masks and physical distance in federal buildings, on federal lands and by federal and contracted officials,” Jeff Zients, COVID-19 response coordinator de Biden, he told CNN.

“And the president will ask governors, public health officials, mayors, business leaders and others to implement masking, physical detachment and other public measures to control COVID-19,” said Zients.

On Thursday, Biden signed another executive order demanding the use of masks at airports and on planes, trains, buses and ferries.

The order came as a relief to US airline employees and flight attendants who for months had to deal with verbal abuse of unruly passengers, many of whom believed COVID-19 was a scam and refused to wear masks on planes. .

Sara Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, urged the Trump administration to impose masks on airports and planes last April.

Responding to Biden’s request in a statement on Thursday, Nelson said, “What a difference leadership makes!”

She said the Biden mask mandate “will provide the necessary support for flight attendants and aviation workers on the front lines”.

Both executive orders mandate that federal agencies take “immediate action” in implementing the mask’s mandates. Details on how and when to implement them, and the possible penalties for violating them, were not defined in the orders. Agency officials had a week to update Zients on their progress, the Washington Post reported.

In addition to the scientific evidence that proves the masks’ effectiveness in preventing the spread of COVID-19, the masks will also serve as a symbolic representation of how seriously the Biden government is taking COVID-19.

“By reducing the number of leaders and officials who refuse to wear masks, you reduce the feeling that this is acceptable behavior,” Matt Seeger, dean of Wayne State University who works with the CDC, told the Washington Post.

The federal property mask’s mandate has already led some right-wing figures and former Trump officials to question its implementation.

They were quick to aim that Biden was not wearing a mask at the Lincoln Memorial on Wednesday night, in apparent violation of his own executive order.

When He asked on this by a Fox News reporter on Thursday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki did not directly address the issue, saying that Biden “was celebrating a historic day night in our country” and that he signed the mandate of the mask “to send a message to the American public about the importance of wearing masks, as this can save tens of thousands of lives.”

“We took a series of precautions, but I don’t think – I think we have big – bigger issues to worry about right now,” said Psaki.

A former Trump aide also questioned why the mask’s mandate did not apply to Psaki while she gave the briefing at the White House. (She removes the mask before speaking from the pulpit.)

Zients said the mask’s mandates “were not a political statement” but about “the health of our families and the economic recovery of our country”.

During the pandemic, Trump and some lawmakers in the Republic repeatedly disregarded and ridiculed the basic precautions of COVID-19. They refused to wear masks in public and held “super-publicizing” events at the White House and campaign rallies where most participants did not wear a mask.

Trump even ridiculed Biden for always being seen wearing a mask, suggesting it was a sign of weakness.

Trump and his administration politicized the use of masks, encouraging their supporters and conservatives to turn the masks into an issue of meaningless and dangerous cultural warfare that often led to violence. Across the country, people often got involved in verbal fights and physical confrontations over wearing masks in public places, some of which became deadly.

The lack of clear federal guidelines and Trump’s confused messages about the severity of the pandemic led to confusion and chaos over mask mandates and other public health guidelines at the state and local levels. It also led many of his supporters to believe that COVID-19 was a scam.

Biden, who promised to be transparent and truthful about the pandemic, said it will be months before most Americans are vaccinated and that the death toll is likely to exceed 500,000 in February.

“Experts say that wearing a mask from now until April, we would save more than 50,000 lives going forward,” said Biden. “50,000 lives. So I’m asking all Americans to dress up for the next 100 days.”