In response to a letter from the Omaha Public School board, Omaha City Councilman Pete Festersen tweets the council will move forward with a mask requirement proposal similar to Lincoln’s.
The O-P-S board supports the proposal.
“The fact of the matter is, doctors are telling us what to do, and there’s no reason that the threat of a lawsuit should stand in the way of a doctor telling us what to do,” O - P - S board member Ben Perlman tells 6 News.
“I can tell you, lawyers and politicians have no business making these decisions. They should stay out of it.”
In a written response to Douglas County Health Director Dr. Adi Pour's Friday decision to not issue a mask mandate, the school board urged the city council to act.
“Some who are opposed to the mask mandate say it is government overreach, but there are a lot of things that are done to protect the health and safety of people and that’s all we’re asking here,” Perlman said.
Pour said a legal disagreement between the State Attorney General's office and the city of Omaha Legal Department prevented her from issuing the mandate, but Perlman says other places haven’t let that stand in their way.
“There has been no lawsuit filed in Lincoln. So how could Douglas County be afraid of a lawsuit if another city in Nebraska has a mask mandate and it’s been an empty threat?” he said.
Perlman says masking is key to ensuring students stay safe while in-person learning.
“Unless the community, and that includes its political leaders, do everything in their power to reduce the spread of this pandemic, it reduces our chance to open up schools,” he said.
While he understands people have their differing opinions when it comes to masks, Perlman feels people should listen to the experts.