Fed mask mandates debated as Vance proposes Freedom to Breathe Act

Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) said the Freedom to Breathe Act that he introduced Thursday afternoon on the Senate floor would prevent the federal government from again imposing facial mask mandates in the country as COVID-19 cases increase.

“We cannot repeat the anxiety, the stress and the nonstop panic of the last couple of years,” said Vance, a Middletown native. “End the mandates, end the panic, let’s get back to some common sense.”

The Freedom to Breathe Act, which would apply through the end of 2024, seeks to prohibit any federal official, including the president of the United States, from issuing mask mandates for domestic air travel, public transit systems, or primary, secondary, and post-secondary schools.

The legislation would also prohibit air carriers, transit authorities and educational institutions from refusing service to individuals who choose not to wear a mask.

“Let’s learn from the mistakes we made instead of doubling down on them,” Vance said.

In response, Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) said during the last three years, 1,139,000 people in the U.S. died from COVID19 and respiratory illnesses. He said medical experts have said that COVID-19 is “coming back and it’s on the rise again.”

He said local communities that want to reduce the spread of the virus should be allowed to use the “tools of vaccines and masks.”

“We must protect the freedoms” of communities to take every measure to keep local residents safe, he said.

Markey said the GOP should stand for “Gimmicks Over People.”

He called the act “a false debate.”

In response, Vance said he wished no one had died from COVID-19, but those deaths

Vance