Pa. Gov. Tom Wolf said Monday that an expanded mask-wearing order signed by his Health Secretary last week could be in place until there is a coronavirus vaccine.
Speaking at an event at the PSECU Child Care Center Playground where new means of funding and support for child care centers was discussed, Wolf later fielded a question regarding how long the mask-wearing order would be in place and if there were any indicators that he was watching for regarding possibly ending it sooner rather than later.
“I’m sort of thinking this is until we get a vaccine, but I don’t have any real formal goal there,” Wolf said on a video of the news conference. “There are some places where people just wear masks, as a matter of, just people wear them. I think it might be a good idea.
“This is something that actually does make you safer. When I’m wearing a mask makes me safer when you’re wearing a mask, and if we can’t practice social distancing that’s a really important thing. Models out there suggest that states, areas where people wear masks, the infection rate is actually lower. This is something that, as we get into infectious disease, and knows when this is going to end, we probably ought to be thinking about this [a mask] just to keep each other safe.”
The order from Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine requires Pennsylvania citizens or those visiting the state to wear a mask in all outdoor public spaces if they can’t socially distance and also while inside of businesses. There are some exceptions, including for safety and health reasons, and while the Health Department has said it’s not asking police to enforce the order, it applies to anyone over the age of 2.
In other news, Wolf also said that he is concerned about new breakouts of positive coronavirus cases occurring in the state.
Monday’s total of 450 new confirmed coronavirus cases was the lowest one-day total since June 18, but it’s expected that other areas of the state could see a spike in positive tests in the days to come following the July Fourth holiday like the one Allegheny County is experiencing. There, bars and restaurants can not serve alcohol to dine-in customers.
“We have seen breakouts in certain areas,” Wolf said. “Allegheny County is the big area of concern at this point. There have been others, more modest [outbreaks] in the past, but right now, Allegheny County’s is the area and we’re working closely with them.
“Pennsylvania has shown as a state an increase in the number of cases but keep in mind that’s from a pretty low base. We were, and had been fairly successful I think; states were talking 10,000 new cases a day. We’re now at 500 over the weekend, new cases. That’s up, because we were down between three and 400 before, so that that is up and that’s a concern. It’s up in localized places and I think what we’re doing is focused on those areas and the specific things that seem to cause them in those areas so I remain concerned.”
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