Georgia’s mask fight sticks out in South

Mayors in Atlanta and other Georgia cities deepened their defiance of Gov. Brian Kemp on Thursday, saying they want their requirements for people to wear masks in public to remain in place, even after the Republican governor explicitly forbade cities and counties from mandating face coverings.

Officials in at least 15 Georgia cities and counties, including Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms in Atlanta, had ordered masks during the coronavirus pandemic, and many are venting outrage at Kemp swatting down their efforts.

“The mayor's order remains in effect, as science and data will continue to drive the city's decisions,” Bottoms spokesperson Michael Smith wrote in a text. “Masks save lives.”

Kemp doesn't disagree, saying he strongly supports mask-wearing to combat the spread of COVID-19 infections. But he has maintained for weeks that cities and counties don't have the power to require masks in public places, saying no local order can be more or less restrictive than his statewide mandates.

Other previously designated red counties were Cuyahoga, Franklin, Fairfield, Lorain, Montgomery, Pickaway, Summit and Wood. Trumbull County dropped off the list Thursday.

Counties are designated as red or Level 3 if they exceed the safe standard in four or five of seven indicators: new cases per capita over two weeks; five-day increases in infections and hospitalizations; sustained increases in emergency room and doctor visits by those with symptoms; proportion of cases not from group settings, such as nursing homes; and a regional intensive care unit capacity above 80%.

Dr. Andrew Thomas, chief clinical officer at Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center, appeared via video link and was called upon by Dewine on Thursday to explain the color-coding system he helped develop.

“It provides an early warning (that) there are issues related to COVID-19” that need attention, Thomas said. “It’s not meant to be a brand,” he said, likening it to a weather forecast that warns “a storm coming in the future.”

Dewine said cases in Delaware County increased by 233 over the past two weeks as medical visits increased. A group of young travelers brought the virus back from Florida, he said.

Licking County saw 159 new cases over two weeks, including a small outbreak at a “house of worship,” the governor said.

Without mentioning a number, Dewine said cases in Union County had quadrupled, with some infections triggered by travelers to Arizona, Florida and North Carolina.

Meanwhile, a total of 1,290 new coronavirus cases, the eighth most of the pandemic on a daily basis, were reported Thursday by state health officials.

The state also reported 115 additional hospitalizations, continuing a spike of those needing inpatient treatment, and 28 more deaths. Hospitalizations increased by 160 on Wednesday and 134 on Tuesday.

Thursday’s numbers brought the statewide total of confirmed and probable cases to 70,601 and COVID-19 fatalities to 3,103. Ohio reported 1,316 COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, the sixth-highest daily total.

The more than 26,000 COVID-19 cases recorded since June 21 represent a 60% increase in less than four weeks and account for 37% of all cases since the pandemic began in Ohio on March 9.

Franklin County, long Ohio’s leader in infections and deaths, reported an additional 276 virus cases and seven more deaths Thursday. Its totals now stand at 13,099 infections and 456 fatalities.

While 24 states now are under statewide mask orders — including six issued since July 1 amid the nationwide spike in virus cases — Dewine declined to add Ohio to the list in his Wednesday address to Ohioans.

Some Democrats talked of Dewine squandering an opportunity to enact a statewide mask order and failing to stand up to fellow Republicans who oppose state mandates.

“A public health and economic emergency such as the one Ohioans are suffering through demands clear and decisive action, not cowardice, political pandering and pleading with people who refuse to listen,” said House Minority Leader Emilia Strong Sykes, D-akron.

Ohio’s seven-day average of positive tests has climbed to 6.4% after standing at 4.5% on June 21, according to state health data.

Another 45 residents of nursing homes and long-term-care facilities died of COVID-19 last week, with the 2,146 cumulative deaths, largely among the elderly, accounting for 70% of Ohio’s total death toll.

State health data show 729 new infections among residents and 529 additional cases among employees last week. Cases stemming from nursing homes now account for 18% of all statewide infections.

Eight more deaths were recorded in facilities in Franklin County, which has recorded the most deaths in Ohio at 308 since April 15.

Officials of John Glenn Columbus International Airport and Rickenbacker International Airport announced Thursday that air passengers and visitors to the airports will be required to wear facial coverings. The mandate also extends to shuttle buses serving parking lots. rludlow@dispatch.com @Randyludlow