OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Govenor Tony Evers’ mask mandate is now extended until March 20. Evers signed that emergency order Tuesday.
It’s been somewhat of a hot-button, controversial topic – wearing a face mask. But it’s also now something that has become a part of our everyday routine.
“I remember early in the pandemic when I had to start wearing a mask for an entire shift, you know, 12 to 24 hours sometimes at a time,” Dr. Brad Burmeister, emergency room physician at Bellin Health said. “They are uncomfortable, they can be really sore on your ears, it makes you feel like it’s hard to breathe but, you know, eventually I noticed that I just got used to it.”
Some say the benefits of wearing them far outweigh those small annoyances.
“It’s not like we like to wear masks but, you know, if it will help everybody, we’re all for it,” said Jay Ratchman, owner of Oshkosh’s Camera Casino.
Pamela Cuevas, owner of Olive & Rose Boutique in Oshkosh tells FOX 11…
“If we just keep wearing the masks, I think it’ll be okay. We’ll be back to normal soon.”
Dr. Burmeister says, while face masks may not be the most comfortable pieces of our wardrobe, they’re worth wearing.
“It’s a tiny sacrifice to make to help our entire society.”
Regardless of how you feel about face masks, Governor Evers says we’ll have to continue wearing them for at least another couple of months.
“We are once again establishing another health emergency and maintaining the statewide mask requirement for another 60 days, as we continue to work on distributing vaccines across the state.”
FOX 11 was the first to relay Evers’ message to Cuevas Tuesday.
“Another 60 days? Wow!”
Burmeister says extending the mandate is just plain ol’ common sense.
“I think, you know, we would just expect that everyone would do their part in helping control the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Local business owners say, for the most part, people are doing their part. They say requiring customers to wear masks hasn’t really been an issue at all.
“Most people want to wear it, because we talk very close to people when we’re showing them things,” said Ratchman. “We feel we’re protecting our own employees and also the customer.”
“They have been really good!” Cuevas said. “I haven’t had any issues with it, so I’m really, really, really thankful for that.”
Prior to the extension, Evers’ mask mandate was expected to end January 19th.
