Local leaders battling COVID-19 fatigue
Leading into the holidays, more than eight months since the coronavirus came to Hamilton County, experts and elected officials know you are fatigued. But they want you to know they’re frustrated.
At a news conference Thursday, County Mayor Jim Coppinger, who had once hoped to avoid such regulation, renewed a countywide mask mandate through the new year, setting the much-contested order to expire six months after its initial issuance.
After making the decision to require face coverings in most public situations, Coppinger watched case counts and positivity rates fall in late summer, as citizens adhered, in large part, to the mandate and other official guidance. Now, the county is experiencing its worst-yet spike in cases, positivity rate and other metrics which show a fatigued population becoming less vigilant.
“Nobody let their guard down, please,” Coppinger said. “You know, it’s really frustrating for the ones of us, particularly the health department, who do this every single day. This is all they’ve been dealing with since the 13th day of March. Since the 13th day of March, every single day — on weekends, whenever they’ve been needed — they have come to work and had to deal with this. And it really is frustrating when we know people have something to
protect themselves with as simple as a mask.”
To encourage compliance and allow people to return to normalcy, a similarly frustrated Chattanooga Mayor Andy Berke said citizens need consistent guidance.
“We need to have clear messaging and strict policies. On the policy side, a mass mandate of our entire state if necessary, that’s been clear for a long time,” he said. “On the messaging side, we have to be clear with people about what they should and shouldn’t do.”
‘CLEAR AND CONSISTENT MESSAGING’
At Thursday’s news conference, Coppinger used a queue of doctors, business owners and the family of a man who died of COVID-19 to explain the severity of the virus. Each speaker used their own experiences to encourage citizens to comply with guidance and listen to facts.
Dr. David Bruce, a member of Coppinger’s COVID-19 task force, said, “I’ve heard all the stories: Bill Gates is behind this. George Soros wants to reset the world and is using this to do it. Masks are being used to enslave us. I’ve heard this is a hoax. I’ve heard that hospitals are lying about what people are dying from for the money. I’ve been told that I’ve been deceived and the devil was behind this. What if the people that don’t believe in this disease have been deceived? What if the devil is working to get them into an earlier grave?”
“This is not a hoax,” Bruce said. “Don’t tell the 30 families who’ve lost a loved one younger than 60 years of age in Hamilton County thus far that this is a hoax. Don’t tell the [ family] that this is a hoax. Don’t tell that to the people who have permanent lung damage. Don’t tell that to the athletes who are not going to compete next year or anytime soon because of the damage that has been done to their bodies from even asymptomatic disease.”
Berke recognizes a portion of less-compliant citizens who believe disinformation, but also cites a lack of clear messaging about the dangers of the virus.
“There are people out there who are refusing to obey common sense and scientifically proven methods out of some misguided statement. And they are certainly listening to the disinformation,” Berke said Friday. “However, there’s also not clarity about how dangerous in- person, small gatherings are.”
“Many people who believe in masks let their guard down at informal moments.”
According to Berke — and Coppinger, Bruce and most other leaders and experts — “small” gatherings of friends and loved ones at people’s homes are causing much of the current influx in cases, as people loosen restrictions on who they spend time with in person, without proper distancing or masks.
“So they may go to work or the grocery store, and they put on their mask. But then they have some friends over for dinner. And the masks are off, because they’re having dinner with friends. You know, they, we just have to be more exact, with people that that’s not … acceptable,” Berke cautioned. “At the happy hours with two or three couples, we’re going to see COVID spread. At the dinner party with 10 people, we’re going to see COVID spread. At the neighborhood gathering for Halloween, we’re going to see COVID spread.”
“And so these informal places are certainly a danger for people, which is why I think we have to talk about limiting our in- person interactions with individuals outside the home.”
Moreover, Berke wants to see more consistent messaging, and policies, from all levels of government.
“The person with the biggest microphone. And in the world as the president of the United States, you know, I would love for him to come out and echo these messages because a lot of people listen to him,” Berke said, noting that inconsistent messaging from different levels of government undermines the authority of cautionary voices.
“And I believe that changing our policies also illustrates to people a new level of concern and alarm,” he added.
‘STRICT POLICY’
Coppinger — noting the amount of regional travel among Hamilton County, surrounding Tennessee counties and North Georgia — recognized the potential for spread from areas without a mask mandate.
“I’m not going to second- guess any other politician or what their decision is,” he said of the lack of regional mandates.
“It’s not the most popular thing to do, but I will tell you I truly believe it’s the right thing to do.
“I know sometimes people get caught in that situation about what’s good for me or what’s good for the people,” he added. “And we want to do what’s good for the people.”
Berke, more directly, has called for Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee — one of just 14 governors in the nation with no statewide mask mandate — to implement one.
“I’m gonna continue to advocate for that. I do think it is important for the state to make us to make a stand about how critical and dire the situation is right now,” Berke said Friday, noting that he has publicly and directly asked Lee to require masks statewide. “Studies have shown it, results have shown it, we need a mask mandate for the entire state.”
A spokesman for Lee said Friday that the governor was not considering a mask mandate, and that the onus was on local governments to make that decision.
“The governor has always strongly encouraged Tennesseans to make responsible decisions to protect themselves and others from COVID- 19, including wearing masks in public, avoiding large gatherings, and staying home when sick. We stress the severity of this crisis every single day and are utilizing [ public service announcements] and all available channels to message to Tennesseans the importance of personal responsibility in combating the virus,” press secretary Gillum
Ferguson wrote.
“The governor’s position remains that he believes statewide, onesizefits- all government mandates are not the best way to achieve sustainable compliance from individuals, as they are more likely to trust local leaders and that local leaders know the unique needs of their communities best,” he said. “Currently 27 counties, representing more than 66% of the state’s population, have a local mask requirement in place. I’d also note that just because there isn’t a county mandate, there’s nothing preventing individuals from wearing them or individual businesses from requiring them on their premises.”