Gov. Ducey Pleads With Arizonans To 'Mask Up'

By Tom Maxedon
Published: Friday, July 17, 2020 - 5:10pm
Updated: Saturday, July 18, 2020 - 2:10pm

Gov. Doug Ducey
Howard Fischer/Capitol Media Services
Gov. Doug Ducey arrives at press conference June 17, 2020, wearing a mask, the first time he has done that since declaring a state of emergency over COVID-19 since March.

Stopping short of issuing a statewide mask mandate, Gov. Doug Ducey stressed the need to de-politicize one of the most clinically proven ways of preventing the spread of the coronavirus.

And that’s “masking up.”

“I believe the decision that [my administration is] making in allowing this final decision to be made at the local level, de-politicizes an issue that should never be politicized,” he said.

While individual communities in Arizona are free to set their own mask guidelines, Ducey said, “I want to see all Arizonans wear a mask.”

His plea follows a surge of coronavirus cases in the state, which, per capita, according to a New York Times article published in early July, rank the fastest spreading of COVID-19 in the world.

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