Meck County leaders discuss face-covering mandate as virus cases rise

CHARLOTTE — Mecklenburg County leaders debated Tuesday night what their options are for requiring residents to wear masks. The support was there to pass a resolution, but there are some hurdles to overcome.

Currently, there is no mask mandate in Mecklenburg County.

Commissioners asked staff for a recommendation, but even if the recommendation is “yes,” the county can only impose it in extraterritorial areas. Cities and towns need to sign off on it, according to the county manager.

For 18 straight days, Mecklenburg County has seen triple digits of COVID-19 cases. Hospitalizations are on the rise, the percent of the positive rate is up and social distancing is on the decline.

COVID-19 is still in the community and leaders aren't sure if people realize it.

“We are watching the heat go up and we are doing pretty much nothing about it,” Commissioner Trevor Fuller said.

“I would like to know what our strategy is, but I feel like we are all over the place,” Commissioner George Dunlap said.

How effective are face-coverings during a pandemic How effective are face-coverings during a pandemic

Most of the commissioners want to mandate masks in the county because they said face-coverings could prevent the state from having to go back in phases.

“If you don't want to turn back, you need to turn on wearing a mask,” Commissioner Susan Rodriguez said.

“It is so simple to wear a mask,” Vice Chair Elaine Powell said. “It will prevent so many hardships in the future. You can prevent us from going backward. You can prevent people from getting sick.”

The county manager said she can't mandate masks across the county without the approval of its towns and cities.

Commissioners asked staff for an official recommendation on whether everyone should be forced to wear one every time they leave their home. County Health Director Gibbie Harris said that a mandate doesn’t mean dramatic success in other areas.

Channel 9 digs into why people refuse to wear face masks in public Channel 9 digs into why people refuse to wear face masks in public

“What we have found in counties that are requiring masks is there is no way to enforce it and the requirement is not making a difference in their community,” Harris said.

With flu season approaching, leaders want the public to slow the spread, so hospitals can continue to have capacity

“I think people have it in their mind where we are never going back to stage one,” Commissioner Susan Harden said.

County leaders also declared racism as a public health crisis and voted Tuesday night to send a copy of the resolution to every single lawmaker and every single county board in this state.

The resolution says in part:

“That the Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners believes that racism can form the basis for a public health crisis affecting our entire county and should be treated with the urgency and funding of a public health crisis. Looking at racism in this way offers legislators, health officials and others an opportunity to analyze data and discuss how to dismantle or change problematic institutions.”

© 2020 Cox Media Group