Wisconsin Municipalities Pass Mask Mandates After COVID-19 Surge

WISCONSIN — Local governments in Wisconsin are approving or considering new masking policies to quell the surge of COVID-19 case averages.

Racine is the latest Wisconsin city to pass a mask mandate after voting 8-6 on Tuesday to require masks to be worn in indoor public spaces, The Journal Times reported.

The Kenosha Common Council will review a proposal for a citywide mask mandate on Sept. 8 after a committee voted against it Monday, Kenosha News reported.

Dane County health officials ordered a mask mandate in August for both the county and Madison after reporting a seven-day average increase of 382 percent.

While Milwaukee hasn't passed its own mask mandate order, the city will require its city workers to get vaccinated and county employees to mask up when inside public facilities.

These decisions follow an uptick in COVID-19 case averages across the state. In Racine, the active case rate is 265 cases per 100,000 residents, the Journal Times reported. The rest of the county has a rate of 180 out of 100,00 residents.

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services recorded a seven-day average of 1,667 on Wednesday. The last time the average was this high was in January.

Both state health services and federal agencies recommend everyone vaccinated or not to wear masks while in areas where COVID-19 transmission is high.

Racine, Kenosha, Dane and Milwaukee County all have high coronavirus transmission rates, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data said.

Neither the governor nor state health agencies can issue a statewide mask mandate after the Wisconsin Supreme Court struck down the last one in March.

See Also: Dane County Health Officials Will Require Masks Indoors Thursday

Wisconsin COVID-19 Case Average Highest Since January