Executive Summary: After closely following the data, reviewing the advice of public health experts, and listening to resident concerns (on both sides of the debate), I can express my full support for a six-week mask requirement in Cedar Falls. Unlike Des Moines and Cedar Rapids, which gives their mayors broad authority to issue the requirement themselves as an Emergency Proclamation, Cedar Falls City Code requires this kind of decision to come from the City Council.
I hope my public declaration of support will encourage Council Members, and increase the likelihood that this measure will pass on Tuesday, September 8th.
On March 17th, Black Hawk County recorded its first positive case of COVID-19. Since then, over 3800 county residents have tested positive for the virus. Most have recovered, and some never experienced symptoms at all. Sadly, 76 Black Hawk County residents of all ages have died directly due to complications from COVID-19.
Since the beginning of this Public Health Emergency, cities have deferred to the expertise of their Federal, State, and County public health experts. In response to their warnings, public buildings were barred to public access. Schools were closed. Even playgrounds were placed off-limits to children. And community leaders strongly encouraged their customers, employees, congregations, and residents to wear masks, wash their hands, and practice social distancing -- all in a concerted effort to “slow the spread” of COVID-19.
What we’ve been doing isn’t working to stem the tide. A glance at the data available to us shows that the trend of COVID-19 spread in Black Hawk County is increasing, not decreasing, over time. The entire state is now seeing an accelerated spread of the virus, making Iowa the #1 at-risk state in the nation -- three times the national average spread rate. Again, what we’ve been doing isn’t enough.
Based on the advice of our County Public Health Director, the County Board of Public Health, and the White House Coronavirus Task Force, I now express my strong support for a city-wide mask mandate similar to those being enacted in Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Waterloo, Ames, Iowa City, and Muscatine. The goal is not to harm businesses -- to the contrary, the goal is to ensure they can remain open and operational, unlike the state’s bars and restaurants. The same for our elementary, middle, and high schools. And, very importantly, the University of Nothern Iowa. A mask mandate won't end the threat of COVID-19 -- we’ll need a vaccine for that. But to get our community transmission rate back down to a manageable risk level, temporary community mask-wearing is a pretty simple requirement.
While I’m not one for rash action, I also know when action is necessary. On September 8th, the City Council will vote on the mask mandate resolution which was indefinitely postponed last month. I trust that their decision, like my own, will be based on the available data and the measured, sober advice of medical experts, rather than on emotions or political loyalties. And I hope their decision is based on the understanding that simply “recommending” and “encouraging” has not been enough to curb the accelerated spread of COVID-19.
I fully appreciate that a mask requirement is no “silver bullet’ to curtail coronavirus. But it’s the next logical step in our local fight against this infectious menace which threatens to continue its negative impacts on our family members, our economy, and our society for months and months to come if we don’t intervene. I trust that Cedar Falls will do its part for stronger intervention through an affirmative vote on September 8th.