https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article244785837.html
A Kansas health official says counties with mask mandates reduced coronavirus case numbers, while case numbers remained steady in areas that don’t require face coverings.
While new confirmed coronavirus cases across Kansas have trended downward, Dr. Lee Norman, the secretary of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, said Wednesday that COVID-19 case reductions could be attributed to the 15 counties that require masks. Those include Wyandotte, Johnson, Sedgwick and Shawnee.
Those counties, Norman said, represent about two-thirds of the state’s population and tend to have denser urban populations and a greater proportion of people from underrepresented backgrounds who are more likely to contract the virus and face complications.
Even though Gov. Laura Kelly announced a mask mandate in public buildings as case numbers across the state soared in early July, about 80% of the state’s 105 counties refused to comply with the executive order, mainly opting for mask recommendations instead. In total, 90 counties did not institute a mask mandate, Norman said.
“Some counties have been the control group with no mask and some counties have been the experimental group where masks are worn,” Norman said, “and the experimental group is winning the battle. All of the improvement in the case development comes from those counties wearing masks.”
A Kansas health official says counties with mask mandates reduced coronavirus case numbers, while case numbers remained steady in areas that don’t require face coverings.
While new confirmed coronavirus cases across Kansas have trended downward, Dr. Lee Norman, the secretary of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, said Wednesday that COVID-19 case reductions could be attributed to the 15 counties that require masks. Those include Wyandotte, Johnson, Sedgwick and Shawnee.
Those counties, Norman said, represent about two-thirds of the state’s population and tend to have denser urban populations and a greater proportion of people from underrepresented backgrounds who are more likely to contract the virus and face complications.
Even though Gov. Laura Kelly announced a mask mandate in public buildings as case numbers across the state soared in early July, about 80% of the state’s 105 counties refused to comply with the executive order, mainly opting for mask recommendations instead. In total, 90 counties did not institute a mask mandate, Norman said.
“Some counties have been the control group with no mask and some counties have been the experimental group where masks are worn,” Norman said, “and the experimental group is winning the battle. All of the improvement in the case development comes from those counties wearing masks.”