The White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs has been conducting weekly briefings on the Federal government’s COVID response and recovery efforts. League staff has been monitoring the weekly calls for state, local, and tribal leaders. This week’s call focused on the need to guard against a resurgence of infections, while the economy reopens.
As reopening progresses, United States Surgeon General Jerome Adams urges local leaders to set an example and to continue to emphasize the need for careful hygiene and hand washing, the need to continue social distancing, and the need to wear face masks in public settings. ‘I wear my mask because I respect and I care about you.’
He suggested local officials might consider making masks available to peaceful protestors, warning the protestors that, if they have any at-risk relatives at home, they could be bringing the disease home with them, and telling them where they can get tested.
He finished up by saying, "Just because we’ve bent the COVID curve, it doesn’t mean the disease has gone away, it isn’t any less contagious, and it hasn’t become any less lethal. It just means that we have room in the ICU for you."
Contact: Jon Moran, Senior Legislative Analyst, jmoran@njlm.org, 609-695-3481 x121.
