Gov. Jim Justice says he doesn’t go many places where mixes casually with the public, but when he does he would wear a mask.
That’s part of his administration’s ongoing advice to the public as a precaution during the coronavirus pandemic.
“That’s a tough one on me because I’m probably not doing as good a job on that as I should,” Justice said during a Thursday afternoon news briefing.
“But the one thing that I’m not doing is — if I were to go out of the vehicle myself, I would have a mask on if I were to go into a Walmart or wherever it may be, a convenience store or whatever. But I just don’t do that.”
The governor said he does not wear a mask while traveling in the car or when walking from the main Capitol building to meetings at the Governor’s Mansion. He said he has two in a console.
“Other than that, I don’t go outside from the standpoint of going into a store or going into a crowded situation,” he said.
“But, I would have a mask on if I went in.”
Adjutant General James Hoyer of the West Virginia National Guard chimed in that he’d gone for a medical procedure yesterday and wore a mask for the appointment. Hoyer said his wife wore a mask to go to the store.
“So the Hoyer family are following the governor’s guidelines related to wearing masks in public,” the adjutant general said.
Bill Crouch, secretary for the Department of Health and Human Resources, said he wears a mask when the situation calls for it too.
“I don’t get out much any more, seems like,” Crouch said. “But I did stop and get gas yesterday and went inside and had a mask on when I went inside.”
Wearing a mask when interacting with the public has become standard advice from the federal government on down.
The idea is that some carriers of coronavirus are asymptomatic and could spread the virus without knowing it. Wearing a facial covering can help prevent the spread of droplets in the air through talking, sneezing, coughing or even singing.
But that advice has sometimes come with mixed messages.
When guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention included wearing masks in public places, President Donald Trump said in a news conference, “You do not have to do it. I don’t think I’m going to be doing it.”
A visit by Vice President Mike Pence to the Mayo Clinic stirred controversy earlier this week when Pence did not wear a mask, running counter to the clinic’s guidelines.
The vice president wore one today while touring a General Motors plant that is manufacturing ventilators.
Guidelines for reopening West Virginia step-by-step, put out this week by the Justice administration, advise “wear face coverings in public where other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain.”
Specific guidelines released for churches, restaurants with outdoor seating and small businesses under 10 employees include similar recommendations.
Clay Marsh, West Virginia’s coronavirus response coordinator, has often repeated the mask message. He said a mask doesn’t have to be surgical-grade but should be a clot covering that is thick enough that you can’t see through it.
“We know that face covers that you can’ see through, that have a layer or two — like a bandanna or a dishtowel or a washcloth — can really make a difference if people wear those,” he said on MetroNews’ “Talkline.”
By Thursday afternoon, Marsh was showing off his own stylish mask — one with the Flying WV logo for West Virginia University, where he is vice president and executive dean for health sciences.
One problem was, when he first shared a photograph on social media, he was wearing the mask so that the WV symbols were pointed downward.
He later posted one from the proper orientation.
Okay, that’s better! pic.twitter.com/GcnQ60TwwS
— Clay Marsh, MD • #StayHome (@claymarsh) April 30, 2020