Photo: Getty Images
When Douglas County Health Director Dr. Lindsay Huse established Omaha's mask mandate on January 12th, it was to be for 30 days. That would mean the final day is this Thursday, February 10th. At the time, Dr. Huse said she would review whether it should be extended past 30 days. Based on this note I just received from the county health department, it doesn't sound like the mandate will end this week, or anytime soon.
"The mask mandate will be reviewed on the 9th. That is Wednesday. The seven-day average total number of cases needs to get below 200. We are now at 361.1. But today we had 412 new cases. Hospital capacity must remain below 85% for seven days. We have been there for just the past three days."
This as Denver recently allowed their mask mandate to end, Democratic governors in New Jersey, Delaware, Connecticut, and Oregon each announced this week their mask mandates will also end in the days ahead, and Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams was photographed without a mask in a classroom full of kids subjected to the mandate.