Gov. Justice considering penalties for those not wearing a mask

Gov. Justice showing mask

CHARLESTON, WV (WOAY) – Once again Wednesday, Gov. Justice discussed his recent executive order establishing a statewide indoor face-covering requirement across West Virginia.

The order requires all West Virginians age 9 and older to wear a face-covering at all indoor public places where six feet of social distancing cannot be maintained.

“We absolutely have got to be as strong as we possibly can about wearing our masks or our face coverings in any public building,” Gov. Justice said. “We have got to have you do that right now.

“I trust West Virginians can handle that on an honor system,” Gov. Justice continued. “We do not want this terrible killer right in our backdoor. It is something we should be concerned about as we move forward.”

Gov. Justice again pointed out that data from the COVID-19 dashboard shows case numbers that are as high as West Virginia has seen since the start of the pandemic.

“Look at the way we’re moving. It’s why we’ve got to wear our masks,” Gov. Justice said. “I don’t like them. They’re inconvenient. But unless we’re going to move toward shutting down our restaurants, bars, and different things around our state again, we’ve got to do this.”

The face-covering requirement does not apply to anyone who has trouble breathing or anyone who is otherwise unable to remove their own face-covering without assistance.

Justice says that he trusts that West Virginia will do the right thing by wearing their masks, but if the numbers continue to rise, he will issue some sort of penalty for those refusing to wear one.

Click here to read more about the executive order.

Gov. Justice makes masks mandatory in indoor places

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