The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
‘Nobody wants mandates’
Lamont: No new COVID restrictions despite jump in state hospitalizations
Gov. Ned Lamont said Monday that his administration is not planning any new mandates, including travel restrictions floated as a possibility last week, even as COVID hospitalizations jump by 32 over the weekend.
Connecticut’s COVID-19 infection rate continues to rise due to the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant. Since Friday, hospitalizations jumped from 76 to 108 with 589 new cases and a 2.27 positivity rate.
Still, the governor said he’ll hold off on restrictions. “Nobody wants mandates. I know how tired everybody is,” Lamont said. “We don’t have to get into that conversation if people just go get vaccinated.”
The governor was in New Haven to make a plea to young people to get vaccinated, which he views as better way to combat the highly contagious delta variant, as opposed to ordering new mandates.
Asked about the possibility of new travel restrictions, which he indicated was under consideration last week, Lamont said, “it’s probably not a really good week to go to Missouri or Arkansas is sort of my sense.”
“I’d probably skip Florida as well,” he said.
Lamont said he’d have to talk with neighboring governors about putting into effect a travel advisory, which Northeast states issued jointly earlier in the pandemic.
“Right now, there’s nothing anticipated,” he said. But, he added, his administration is “closely watching” southern states where infection rates are much higher than in Connecticut.
The White House announced Monday that its keeping current international travel restrictions in place due to the Delta variant and rising coronavirus cases domestically.
While Lamont maintains that restrictions are not needed in Connecticut, other governments are contemplating mandates and additional measures to try to curb the rapid spread of the Delta variant.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday all city employees will either have to be vaccinated or receive weekly testing, and Los Angeles County recently started requiring masks again, even for vaccinated individuals.
“Right now, there’s nothing anticipated.” Gov. Ned Lamont