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CoxHealth President and CEO Steve Edwards says a face mask extension would protect Springfield residents.
SBJ photo by Geoff Pickle
CoxHealth President and CEO Steve Edwards says a face mask extension would protect Springfield residents.

Springfield health leaders recommend mask mandate extension

Posted online

Health leaders yesterday made the case for an extension of the local mask mandate during a Springfield City Council luncheon.

Springfield-Greene County Health Department Director Clay Goddard, CoxHealth President and CEO Steve Edwards, Mercy Hospital Springfield President and Chief Operating Officer Brent Hubbard and Greene County Medical Society President Dr. Kayce Morton all spoke in support of the extension. Council members, too, were in favor of the extension, which would keep the masking ordinance in place through mid-January.

Mayor Ken McClure said council likely would consider the 90-day extension at its next meeting on Oct. 5. Approved by council in July, the mandate currently is slated to expire in mid-October.

"We have done the right thing," McClure said. "We need to continue on where we are."

CoxHealth's Edwards likened Springfield to an island, in which surrounding cities including Ozark and Nixa have not enacted face mask orders.

He said the mask mandate must continue in order to protect Springfield residents, regardless of whether some feel it's inconvenient to wear face coverings.

"Obligation always comes ahead of privilege," he said.

The Health Department's COVID-19 dashboard shows more than 6,000 confirmed coronavirus cases and 59 deaths as of this morning.

The Branson Board of Aldermen earlier this month approved an extension to its face mask order.

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justinalpha

Enough is enough. Nixa, Ozark, and Republic are proving there's not a difference whether you're wearing a mask or not. If you want to continue wearing a mask, that's fine, but don't mandate for everyone.

Wednesday, September 23, 2020
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