(Courtesy photo: County Judge Wade McKinney.)
Note: This interview was recorded at the Courthouse Annex on Wednesday, July 8.
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Henderson County Judge Wade McKinney clarified the county’s position on Gov. Greg Abbott’s executive order from last week during our interview Wednesday (listen above).
The most publicized part of the Governor’s order is a requirement to wear masks or face coverings, but McKinney said that requirement isn’t as simple as it seems at first glance.
“When you look at all the associated documents, there is a caveat that is in there,” he said. “It is the thing we’ve heard all along, six feet of social distancing.”
McKinney explained the county reads the Governor’s order as requiring a mask when six feet of social distancing cannot be maintained. If you can social distance, you don’t need the mask, he said.
McKinney reiterated his belief that masks or face coverings are important, saying that there is ample evidence now to show that they help slow individuals from spreading the coronavirus. However, he believes the Governor’s rule requiring masks has been misconstrued.
McKinney read directly from the Governor’s order, which says a face covering is required “whenever it is not feasible to maintain six feet of social distancing from another person not in the same household.”
The Governor’s order does allow for enforcement of the mask order, but Henderson County Sheriff Botie Hillhouse said that was “not a priority” for the Sheriff’s Office at this time.
The Governor issued a proclamation at the same time as his order giving mayors and county judges the authority to restrict some gatherings of 10 or more. But that isn’t exactly what it seems, either, because of all the exceptions, said McKinney.
He pointed out that the Governor added the Department of State Health Services (DSHS) minimum standard health protocols to his proclamation, which was updated last week at the same time as the proclamation.
“There is a whole listing of specific circumstances where the capacity (of an event) is limited, but it can be much larger than 10 people,” McKinney said.
You can listen to our discussion about the Governor’s order in the interview starting at the 21:22 mark.
Also in the interview
-- The County Judge spoke about a spike in hospitalizations in our region starting at the 4:16 mark.
-- We discuss NET Health and what’s behind getting the COVID-19 numbers, including the fact Henderson County has just one person at the public health agency working on its data, and shares that person with another county. You can listen to that discussion starting at the 12:15 mark.
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