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Governor Reynolds Asks Iowans to Do More to Protect Themselves as Coronavirus Levels Reach New Records
DES MOINES, IOWA — Governor Kim Reynolds is asking Iowans to “double down” on their efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19 as the number of infected and hospitalized Iowans continues to soar to new records. At a news conference on Thursday, her first in nearly a month, the Governor asked Iowans to avoid large events, including holiday gatherings, and to follow CDC guidelines for wearing masks and social distancing.
That request comes after a month of campaigning by Governor Reynolds for Republican candidates at large events that ignored some CDC recommendations and where face mask and social distancing guidelines were not followed by the majority in attendance. Reynolds defended those rallies Thursday, saying that all attendees were informed when they arrived about the recommendations.
“Anybody that goes, they tell them this is the protocol, they hand out masks, they take their temperature, they encourage it, so that is being done at every aspect,” Reynolds said. However video from the majority of Republican rallies held in recent weeks, those protocols were not being followed and most attendees were seen without masks.
Governor Reynolds was asked by WHO 13 Political Director Dave Price why she didn’t encourage mask wearing while on stage during the rallies. Governor Reynolds claimed that doing so would be illegal. “We can’t prohibit First Amendment rights. People who are out there peacefully gathering and protesting, whatever it is that may be, not everyone is wearing a mask.” The Governor did not clarify which of the five tenants of the First Amendment would be violated by her asking rally attendees to wear masks or how spreading that message at a rally is different than sharing it in a news conference.
Governor Reynolds says she isn’t planning any new mitigation efforts despite COVID-19 records falling daily. Instead, she is asking Iowans to do more of what they are already doing, asking them to “double down” on face mask wearing, social distancing and hand washing. Reynolds said Iowans are already doing an admirable job of that, but they need to double that effort “for at least the next three weeks”. She also encouraged Iowans to get a flu shot as well.
Reynolds also asked Iowans to now avoid gatherings large and small after a month of attending campaign rallies. “Carefully consider whether certain events are worth the risk they could present for you or for someone you love,” she said, “We also need to be thinking about upcoming holiday gatherings even with our own family and make a plan on how we can celebrate together safely and responsibly.”
In spite of record hospitalizations and positive rates, the Governor says her administration is taking the right approach to the pandemic and believes Iowans made that point on Tuesday. “I also think that Iowans said in this election they want to get through it, they want to figure out a way to move on,” she said, “They believe in how we’ve handled COVID-19.”
More than 1,800 Iowans have died from COVID-19 and 4.5% of the state’s population has tested positive for the virus.
