Gov. Mike DeWine on Wednesday announced plans to require businesses enforce the face mask mandate for employees and customers. It appears some residents in rural counties, where rates of new COVID-19 cases are outstripping their urban neighbors, were listening.
At Mosier鈥檚 Market in Raymond, the dozen or so customers lined up at the meat counter all had a mask on. One customer walking back to his car in the parking lot wasn鈥檛 wearing one, but he was the only person among the 20-odd customers there Thursday afternoon.
Manager Andy Mosier says masks do appear to be far more prevalent after the governor鈥檚 address.
鈥淵eah, I鈥檇 say today is kind of back to where it was right after the directive first came out, where just it鈥檚 a handful of people who aren鈥檛 wearing them," Mosier said.
Although Union County has less than one-tenth the total cases of nearby Franklin County, its per-capita rate鈥�585 per 100,000鈥攊s higher and rising quickly. The rate there has almost doubled since last week.
Mosier says when statewide face mask order in July, compliance was high, but it steadily decreased over time. Before Wednesday's address, where DeWine threatened to shut down businesses that didn't comply, Mosier said it was maybe 50-50 whether a customer would come in wearing a mask.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been instructed by the sheriff department and our health department not to confront them,鈥� Mosier says. 鈥淧eople are fighting back and they鈥檙e claiming HIPAA laws, so we鈥檙e just, they told us it鈥檚 not a battle worth fighting.鈥�
Under the governor鈥檚 new order, however, business owners may have to be more assertive when it comes to enforcing mask requirements. Mosier isn鈥檛 looking forward to that.
鈥淵ou know, employees here, we have to wear them, we鈥檝e been wearing them since April," Mosier said. "But to tell customers to, I don鈥檛 think that鈥檚 going to go over well. When it first started, we tried to mandate it and people said, 'Well, I鈥檓 never going to shop here again.'鈥�
Out in the parking lot, Eileen Guy has just finished loading the milk and other groceries in her trunk. She's wearing a bright, grassy green mask, and agrees that more people appear to be wearing masks.
鈥淲ell, a lot of them are, a lot of them are,鈥� Guy says. 鈥淏ut a lot of them still needs to do it, in order to get this down.鈥�
She's quick to point out that people in the area haven鈥檛 been attentive enough about masks over the last few weeks.
鈥淣o. No,鈥� she says. 鈥淭hey鈥檝e been lacking. In the businesses, you go in the stores and they鈥檙e not wearing them anymore. A lot of them.鈥�
In addition to the order strengthening mask requirements at businesses, DeWine promised another that would place new limits on social gatherings like weddings. He also if Ohio doesn鈥檛 see improvements by next week, state officials may have to order bars, restaurants and gyms to close again.
