St. Louis County rescinds mask mandate. How will that affect southwest Illinois?
Although COVID-19 cases are on the rise again in the St. Louis area and in the metro-east, St. Louis County rescinded its mask mandate on Thursday based on a judge’s ruling.
The Illinois mask mandate remains in effect in the metro-east.
Herb Simmons, director of the St. Clair County Emergency Management Agency, said he “can’t say for sure” whether St. Louis County’s decision would affect infection rates in the metro-east but he noted “that’s a possibility.”
Simmons urged residents to continue to wear face masks because studies show they are a reliable way to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus that has infected nearly 1.9 million and killed almost 30,000 Illinoisians since the pandemic began in March 2020.
“We the people are our own worst enemy when it comes to stuff like that,” Simmons said of people not wearing masks in public places.
Simmons urged residents to not let their guard down during holiday gatherings this winter.
Myla Blanford, director of the St. Clair County Health Department, recommended residents follow advice issued this week by Dr. Ngozi Ezike, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health.
“While we don’t have all the answers right now, we know the general prevention strategies we’ve been recommending – vaccination, boosters, masking, testing, physical distancing – are our best protection against the virus and its variants,” Ezike said in a statement.
“As long as the virus continues to circulate, it has the potential to mutate into new variants. Vaccination can help stop circulation, but we need more people to get vaccinated.”
Missouri court ruling
Dr. Faisal Khan, acting director of the St. Louis County Department of Public Health, issued an order on Thursday to end his Sept. 27 mask mandate based on a Cole County, Missouri, judge’s ruling.
Khan noted that last month he had asked the St. Louis County Council to approve a new mask mandate, but it failed to do so at its meetings on Tuesday and on Nov. 30.
“I continue to strongly recommend that St. Louis County residents and guests wear masks indoors in public spaces,” Khan wrote in his order. “Masks save lives.”
Khan based his order on a ruling by Cole County Circuit Judge Daniel Green who has said orders from local health officials violate the Missouri Constitution, according to a report from KSDK-Channel 5.
The city of St. Louis’ face covering order remains in effect, the health department said Thursday.
“Data from the state’s public health experts at the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services shows that areas with mask mandates have a much lower daily rate of new COVID-19 infections, and the City of St. Louis will continue to listen to the public health professionals in order to mitigate the spread of the virus,” city’s health department said in a statement.
COVID cases increasing
Metro-east and St. Louis area health officials have said the number of COVID-19 cases are on the rise in recent weeks after dropping from a summer surge.
St. Clair County officials on Wednesday announced 1,012 new COVID-19 cases in the past week. That number is up sharply from 611 cases reported the week of Nov. 25-Dec. 1; 547 the week of Nov. 18-24; and 472 the week of Nov. 11-17.
St. Clair County announced nine deaths on Wednesday for the previous week while there was one death from Nov. 25 to Dec. 1.
The St. Louis Pandemic Task Force, which has 24 hospitals, including three in the metro-east, said the seven-day average of COVID patients has doubled over the past month. This number stood at 440 on Wednesday and 454 on Thursday.
The three metro-east hospitals in the task force are affiliated with BJC HealthCare. They are Alton Memorial Hospital, Memorial Hospital Belleville and Memorial Hospital Shiloh.
This story was originally published December 9, 2021 at 1:25 PM.
