KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Missouri Gov. Mike Parson took to Twitter Wednesday to weigh in on the Centers for Disease Control's new guidance moving the nation back toward mask-wearing to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
He expressed concern for the back-and-forth nature of the CDC guidance on masks.
"The recently updated CDC guidance regarding mask wearing for fully vaccinated individuals is disappointing and concerning. It’s disappointing because it is inconsistent with the overwhelming evidence surrounding the efficacy of the vaccines and their proven results," Parson wrote.
The governor believes moving back to masks will be a setback for vaccination efforts.
It’s concerning because the nation’s top public health agency appears to be cowering to the political pressures of those who only want to force mandates and shutdowns, which only further prolong the recovery. This decision only promotes fear & further division among our citizens.
— Governor Mike Parson (@GovParsonMO) July 28, 2021
"It only serves to disrupt the increases we are seeing in vaccine uptake. This self-inflicted setback encourages skepticism and vaccine hesitancy at a time when the goal is to prevent serious illnesses and deaths from COVID-19 through vaccination," he wrote.
Parson also criticized health officials for the decision.
"It’s concerning because the nation’s top public health agency appears to be cowering to the political pressures of those who only want to force mandates and shutdowns, which only further prolong the recovery. This decision only promotes fear & further division among our citizens," he wrote.
The Missouri governor has historically been against implementing wide-reaching mask mandates.
A bill passed by the state legislature in 2021 will limit any public health orders put in place and make them harder to continuously renew after orders were continually extended after initially being implemented in 2020.
The city of St. Louis recently reimplemented its mask mandate.
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt responded by filing a lawsuit.
