Mask rule remains even as cases fall

As active cases of COVID-19 creep into the single digits, local officials are reminding residents that the county health officer’s order goes further than Gov. Steve Bullock’s July 15 mask mandate.

Bullock’s controversial directive requires residents in counties with more than four active cases to don face coverings in public indoor spaces. It also requires masks at large outdoor events where social distancing is unfeasible or ignored.

Dr. Brad Black’s July 21 health order, which pertains specifically to Lincoln County, generally follows the governor’s directive but omits a case threshold for where it no longer applies. That means the order remains in effect until Black lifts it, regardless of the number of active cases in the county.

Jennifer McCully, the county’s public health officer, issued the reminder while updating the community on the pandemic Aug. 17. As of that date, the county was home to six active cases of COVID-19.

She pointed to the section of the order that pertains to limitations, at the tail end of the five-page document.

“… [T]he local health order for face coverings remains effective until ‘the Health Officer revises or rescinds it,’” McCully wrote. “This means that we do not fall under the governor mandate of less than four active cases.”

In her email, McCully said the reasoning for eschewing the case number minimum was to provide consistency locally. It avoids the governor’s directive remaining in effect some days and getting lifted on others, she said.

Requiring face coverings regardless of the case count also helps prevent the spread of the virus.

“This is in place to ensure our case count remains low and we do not yo-yo (possibly daily) between mandatory masks or not,” McCully wrote. “Please continue to be diligent in face covering wearing, social distancing and practicing good hygiene.”

The announcement predictably provoked anger on local social media, where the mandate remains unpopular. Montana state law gives local health officers wide latitude in responding to “imminent threats” to public health. Section 118 of Chapter 2, Title 50 provides health officers like Black the authority to “take steps to limit contact between people.”

That same section of law gives Black the power to cancel events, close businesses and other public facilities, and quarantine or isolate individuals.

County Commissioner Mark Peck (D-1) said last month during a county health board meeting that, agree or disagree, the statute was approved by the state legislature and presented to a governor.

“Until it’s challenged in court, it’s the law,” Peck said. “Is it government overreach? I think it is, but that’s my personal deal. But the point of it is, it’s law.”