MADISON, Wisconsin (AP) – Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers issued a new statewide mask order on Thursday, an hour after the Republican-controlled legislature voted to revoke his previous term, saying he did not. had the authority to make such a decree.
The Democratic governor said in a video message that his priority is to keep people safe and that wearing a mask is the most basic way of doing this.
“If the legislature continues to make politics and we don’t continue to wear masks, we will see more preventable deaths and it will take even longer to get our state and our economy back on track,” said Evers.
The Assembly’s vote to revoke the order of the masks came a week after the Senate voted to eliminate the mandate. Republicans, who control both chambers, argued that Evers exceeded his authority by repeatedly extending the mask’s mandate without legislative approval. The revocation had not even taken effect before Evers launched a new one.
Republican leaders did not immediately return messages to comment on Evers’ new order.
Dr. Bud Chumbley, head of the Wisconsin Medical Society, criticized the Assembly’s vote for repeal, saying he “sends the wrong message at the wrong time”.
“Instead, we need all of our political leaders to come together behind the same message: wear a mask to protect yourself and others, prevent further deaths and restore our economy,” he said in a statement.
The Medical Society was one of nearly 60 organizations representing companies, healthcare professionals, hospitals, firefighters, pharmacists, churches, schools and more who opposed the revocation.
The Assembly voted 52-42 to revoke the mandate, with seven Republicans joining all Democrats in the opposition.
The Supreme Court could end legislative comings and goings with a ruling in a pending case that says Evers must secure legislators’ approval every 60 days. The court could also say that it does not need approval, thus forcing the legislature to revoke all orders issued by Evers with which Republicans disagree.
Health experts say masks may be the most effective way to prevent the spread of COVID-19, which killed nearly 6,000 Wisconsin residentsand that a revocation risks creating confusion and sending the wrong message about the importance of masks.
“We should wear masks,” said state deputy Robyn Vining. “Masks save lives.”
Republicans say the issue is not about masks, but whether Evers can legally issue multiple emergency health orders during the pandemic. The legislature argues that it cannot and must guarantee its approval every 60 days. Evers says the changing nature of the pandemic has allowed him to issue several orders and mask orders.
“I know you want to talk about masks. It is not, ”said Republican majority leader Jim Steineke. “It’s about the rule of law.”
Coronavirus has declined in Wisconsin and elsewhere in the United States, but health experts have warned of a continuing danger, including the emergence of new and more contagious variants. All neighboring states in Wisconsin have some form of masking mandate, according to the National Academy for State Health Policy.
The revocation is the last defeat for Evers, who has been fighting to fight the pandemic. Republican lawmakers last year convinced the state Supreme Court to revoke his order to stay at home and a state appeals court lifted the limits he had imposed on internal meetings.
Prior to Thursday’s vote, House Republicans sent Evers a letter saying they would support a more limited mask mandate that applies to locations “susceptible to the transmission of the virus.” Republicans said this included health facilities, nursing homes, public transportation, state government buildings, assisted living facilities, public schools, universities and prisons.
Republicans asked Evers to come up with a proposed rule to enact such a mandate, promising that such a request would be “reviewed in a fair and judicious manner”.
The Assembly also passed a bill containing a clause designed to ensure that the state does not lose about $ 50 million a month to pay food stamp benefits to about 243,000 low-income people in the state. Federal law requires an emergency health order to receive the money. The Senate planned to meet on Friday to approve the bill, sending it to Evers.
Evers did not say whether he would sign the law. It would also prohibit the closing of churches during the pandemic and prevent employers from requiring workers to be vaccinated against the disease. It also gives the legislature control over how federal money to fight the virus is spent.
Evers had supported an earlier and more limited version of the bill.
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