Wyoming is rolling back its statewide mask mandate, and will allow bars, restaurants, theaters, and gyms to function as normal, Republican Gov. Mark Gordon announced Monday.
The state will end both the mask mandate and the restrictions on bars, restaurants, theaters, and gyms, starting Mar. 16, according to a press release from Gordon’s office.
Bars, restaurants, theaters, and gyms, from Mar. 16 onwards will no longer be required to have their employees wearing masks at all times. They will also not be required to ensure that their customers maintain 6 feet of social distancing, the Assosciated Press (AP) reported.
By removing these restrictions, Wyoming will become the latest state in the union to lift statewide mask mandates and other COVID-19 restrictions, joining Iowa, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, and Texas, which have undertaken similar lifting of restrictions in recent weeks according to the AP. (RELATED: Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon Slams Biden For ‘Devastating’ Executive Order Banning Oil And Gas Leases)
“I thank the people of Wyoming for their commitment to keeping one another safe throughout this pandemic,” Gordon said in the press statement.
Governor Mark Gordon at a press conference on COVID-19 on October 5, 2020 (Photo Credits: Screenshot/Wyoming PBS via Youtube)
“It is through their efforts that we have kept our schools and businesses operating and our economy moving forward. I ask all Wyoming citizens to continue to take personal responsibility for their actions and stay diligent as we look ahead to the warmer months and to the safe resumption of our traditional spring and summer activities,” he added.
Wyoming has seen low numbers of newly confirmed cases recently, according to data from the Wyoming Department of Health.
Around Dec. 25, 2020, the state saw a peak count of roughly 600 new cases per day on average. Now, the numbers have dropped to approximately 60 per day, one-tenth of what they used to be.
Wyoming had one of the “most efficient” vaccination drives in the country, the governor’s office stated. Nearly 100,000 first doses have been given. 19% of the state residents have gotten at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, according to Gordon’s office.
Children, however, will still have to continue wearing masks at school even after Mar. 16, partially due to them not qualifying yet to be vaccinated, Wyoming’s Health Department spokeswoman Kim Deti clarified, according to the AP.