Name: Editorial: This isn’t a game. It’s a pandemic.
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Editorial: This isn’t a game. It’s a pandemic.

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American-Statesman Editorial BoardView CommentsMore and more Texans are contracting the coronavirus at a clip that public health officials warn . Waves of new patients are hitting hospitals, which statewide are seeing two-thirds more COVID-19 patients now than they had . And Gov. Greg Abbott appears to be more interested in playing word games than providing reliable leadership.In a move seemingly pulled from the pages of “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,” Abbott announced that, actually, local governments had the power they needed all along to require face masks, to curb the virus’ spread. This was quite a surprise, considering Abbott issued an executive order barring cities and counties from enforcing a mask requirement. Turns out all they needed to do, Abbott said Wednesday, was require businesses to require masks of their customers and employees, not have local governments directly require masks of the public.“The county judge in Bexar County finally figured that out,” Abbott with Waco TV station KWTX, as if the state’s coronavirus strategy was a delicious riddle for local policy makers to solve.Local officials, including those in Austin, quickly for businesses. But it shouldn’t have taken seven weeks and secret code-cracking abilities to make it happen. In reality, it took an undeniable upswing of COVID cases, and , for Abbott to do what he should have done in late April: Let local communities establish mask mandates as needed.Regrettably, in some circles, masks have become , when in fact they are tools in the very real battle against the coronavirus. found the spread of coronavirus cases slowed considerably if at least half the population wore masks, and that masks are twice as effective if worn by people whenever they’re in public — not just when people have symptoms.Slowing the spread is central to saving lives — and to protecting our economy by allowing businesses to safely open without staffers and customers falling ill. Given the high stakes, and the need for widespread use for masks to be effective, allowing face coverings to be a matter of personal preference simply won’t protect our fellow Texans.At many turns, Abbott has emphasized the importance of wearing masks and even donned them himself. Even in the face of the state’s largest public health crisis in a century, though, Abbott seems downright allergic to asserting governmental authority to protect the people.We saw in late March, when Abbott enacted a stay-at-home order while emphatically telling reporters it wasn’t a stay-at-home order — until the next day, when his public service announcement to stay at home. , Abbott toyed around with semantics at a time when the governor should have made a straightforward call to action that could be easily communicated to millions of Texans.This week Abbott also blasted local officials, noting they have the ability to fine people who violate executive orders, but "they haven't lifted a finger to do so." He said this with a straight face, seemingly forgetting he and other state GOP leaders were the ones who undermined local enforcement last month by of Shelley Luther, the Dallas hair stylist who was fined and jailed for flagrantly violating the stay-at-home order.Interim Austin-Travis County Health Authority Dr. Mark Escott has made admirable efforts to cut through all of this noise : “Public health should not be a political issue.” He notes that Abbott and local officials repeatedly hit the same talking points: Wear a mask. Wash your hands. Stay at least 6 feet away from others. Stay home if you can.Still, while Abbott has engendered complacency by touting the abundance of empty hospital beds, Escott says steeply rising case numbers show an urgent community response is needed.Coronavirus cases are up a stunning 90% in Travis County compared with the previous week, . After hovering for weeks at 8-10 new hospital admissions per day, Travis County is seeing more than 20 new COVID hospitalizations a day. In the previous week, we were on track to double the number of new coronavirus cases every 44 days. Now we’re on track to double them every 25 days.“We do not want to sustain the trajectory we have right now because we can’t,” Escott said.We simply can’t afford a fickle response to this pandemic. Now is no time for playing games.View Comments

American-Statesman Editorial BoardView CommentsMore and more Texans are contracting the coronavirus at a clip that public health officials warn . Waves of new patients are hitting hospitals, which statewide are seeing two-thirds more COVID-19 patients now than they had . And Gov. Greg Abbott appears to be more interested in playing word games than providing reliable leadership.In a move seemingly pulled from the pages of “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,” Abbott announced that, actually, local governments had the power they needed all along to require face masks, to curb the virus’ spread. This...

Editorial: This isn’t a game. It’s a pandemic.

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