Sen. Roger Marshall and other Republican colleagues are ditching their masks while working at the Capitol.
Marshall says mask mandates should go away as more people become vaccinated.
Speaking on the Fox Business Channel Tuesday with Neil Cavuto, Sen. Marshall said he believes mask mandates are causing more people to avoid getting vaccinated, despite being about 90 percent effective in preventing COVID infections.
“Because they feel like they’re being tied to this mask thing, that we’re not being rewarded for getting the vaccine, we should be able to get rid of the masks. As long as Dr. Fauci keeps preaching that we’ve got to keep these masks on forever, it’s like a ball and chain, insulting our individual freedoms and Kansans are frustrated with the whole process,” he said.
According to Fox News, some 6,000 Americans have been diagnosed with COVID-19 after becoming fully vaccinated. Marshall says it’s a relatively small percentage of the 137 million who have been inoculated.
“More importantly, none of those people have had to be hospitalized or have died to my knowledge. So the vaccine works and really renders this COVID virus as harmless as the seasonal flu and maybe even the seasonal cold. That’s why I think we can lose the mask mandate now,” he said.
The Biden administration has required face coverings to be worn on all federal properties including the Capitol. Marshall, along with colleagues like Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) have said they’ll stop wearing masks while working in the Capitol since they are fully vaccinated. Members of Congress were some of the earliest to receive vaccines in December and January.
The Centers for Disease Control recommends fully vaccinated individuals to continue to wear masks in public as a precaution due to uncertainty over how long vaccines protect people.
