Six Council Members Want Tougher Pandemic Rules
Push mayor for indoor mask mandate and mandatory vaccinations for city employees.
COVID-19 vaccine. (Pixabay License).
Following a surge in COVID-19 cases, a group of Milwaukee Common Council members is pushing for a more proactive approach by Mayor Tom Barrett and Health Commissioner Kirsten Johnson to combat the virus.
In a letter submitted Thursday, six council members asked for a plan to potentially restore a citywide, indoor mask mandate and institute a requirement that city workers be vaccinated or receive regular COVID-19 testing.
The city allowed its emergency health order to expire on June 1st, eliminating the associated mask mandate. Barrett has repeatedly said Milwaukee’s approach is to “follow the science.”
The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued updated guidance Tuesday that even vaccinated people should wear masks in areas where COVID-19 is spreading at “substantial” or “high” rates. More than 46% of U.S. counties fall into that classification, including Milwaukee.
The City of Milwaukee reported a rate of 50.7 cases per 100,000 residents last week, putting the city back into the “substantial” category.
“We certainly have the hope that Milwaukeeans will embrace masks once more,” said Barrett during a media briefing Tuesday, but he also said he did not expect Johnson to use her authority to issue a new mandate.
The six council members are asking Johnson to reinstitute the mandate if the rate again reaches 100 cases per 100,000 residents. “To support this effort legislatively, the Common Council has introduced an ordinance requiring masks indoors should the transmission level stated above be reached. Introducing this file allows us to act swiftly on the matter, should the need arise,” they wrote.
The city’s vaccine rollout remains incredibly uneven. Residents of the 53203 ZIP Code, which encompasses the Westown neighborhood, have a best in the city vaccination rate of 68.8% (at least one shot), while residents of the 53206 ZIP Code have a city-worst vaccination rate of 29.3% according to state data. The citywide rate is 42.3%.
Johnson previously said the city is exploring offering more incentives. But the most popular event in Milwaukee in two years apparently wasn’t much of a draw. A chance to win a pair of tickets to game six of the NBA Finals, selling for more than $1,000 each, in exchange for receiving a vaccine shot yielded only 19 participants.
As of mid-May, the census tract bordered by W. Brown St., W. Vliet St., N. 35th St. and Washington Park has a vaccination rate of only 20.7% (at least one dose), the lowest in the county. Two months later it climbed to 22.4% and is now only the fourth worst. The worst is now a census tract along N. 60th St. just north of W. Silver Spring Dr., 21.3%.
More about the Coronavirus Pandemic
- MHD Release: Milwaukee Health Department Launches COVID-19 Wastewater Testing Dashboard - City of Milwaukee Health Department - Jan 23rd, 2024
- Milwaukee County Announces New Policies Related to COVID-19 Pandemic - County Executive David Crowley - May 9th, 2023
- DHS Details End of Emergency COVID-19 Response - Wisconsin Department of Health Services - Apr 26th, 2023
- Milwaukee Health Department Announces Upcoming Changes to COVID-19 Services - City of Milwaukee Health Department - Mar 17th, 2023
- Fitzgerald Applauds Passage of COVID-19 Origin Act - U.S. Rep. Scott Fitzgerald - Mar 10th, 2023
- DHS Expands Free COVID-19 Testing Program - Wisconsin Department of Health Services - Feb 10th, 2023
- MKE County: COVID-19 Hospitalizations Rising - Graham Kilmer - Jan 16th, 2023
- Not Enough Getting Bivalent Booster Shots, State Health Officials Warn - Gaby Vinick - Dec 26th, 2022
- Nearly All Wisconsinites Age 6 Months and Older Now Eligible for Updated COVID-19 Vaccine - Wisconsin Department of Health Services - Dec 15th, 2022
- City of Milwaukee Bi-Weekly COVID-19 Update - City of Milwaukee Health Department - Dec 9th, 2022
Read more about Coronavirus Pandemic here
Political Contributions Tracker
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- December 31, 2019 - JoCasta Zamarripa received $50 from Nikiya Dodd
- December 31, 2019 - Marina Dimitrijevic received $50 from Nikiya Dodd
- May 7, 2015 - Nik Kovac received $10 from Cavalier Johnson
- May 5, 2015 - José G. Pérez received $10 from Cavalier Johnson
- May 5, 2015 - José G. Pérez received $100 from JoCasta Zamarripa
A mask mandate? YES!!
A vaccination mandate? NO!!!
These COVID vaccines have killed over 6,000 Americans due to adverse reactions, according to the CDC. There have been no deaths reported for people wearing COVID masks.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/safety/adverse-events.html
@NieWiederKrieg “These COVID vaccines have killed over 6,000 Americans due to adverse reactions, according to the CDC.” Nope. This is false. It is NOT what the CDC’s VAERs database shows. The website and the CDC make it very clear the reports do NOT prove causation. This is mentioned numerous times on VAERS, but sadly ignored by many. In fact, on the very page you link to: “Reports of adverse events to VAERS following vaccination, including deaths, do not necessarily mean that a vaccine caused a health problem.” And again on that page: “FDA requires healthcare providers to report any death after COVID-19 vaccination to VAERS, even if it’s unclear whether the vaccine was the cause.”
@ Dave Reid – The CDC has reported 6,340 COVID vaccination deaths as of July 21, 2021.
But they didn’t include Hank Aaron who died of respiratory failure 17 days after taking the shot. And they didn’t include prize fighter Marvelous Marvin Hagler who died of respiratory failure 2 weeks after taking the COVID shot.
The number of Americans who died from COVID vaccination is probably closer to 15,000 or 20,000. And this doesn’t include the permanent injuries caused by the vaccination.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/safety/adverse-events.html
@NieWiederKrieg “The CDC has reported 6,340 COVID vaccination deaths as of July 21, 2021.” This is 100% false. The CDC has not and in fact says so numerous times on the VAERS site you are incorrectly reading. I’ll try this again, and ask you to stop spreading misinformation. From the page you link to: “Reports of adverse events to VAERS following vaccination, including deaths, do not necessarily mean that a vaccine caused a health problem. A review of available clinical information, including death certificates, autopsy, and medical records, has not established a causal link to COVID-19 vaccines.” (bolding added by me for emphasis).
I’m sure there are many people that have died after having lunch, but it doesn’t mean having lunch is what killed them.
@NieWiederKrieg, in 2019 (before Covid), the US recorded 2,854,838 deaths (7,821 deaths each day).
While some Americans have not been vaccinated, many have been vaccinated twice, so total US vaccinations (343 million) approximates the total US population (330 million).
So, if people getting covid shots died at the average 2019 rate, you’d expect roughly 7,800 to die within one day of getting a shot; 15,600 to die within 2 days, etc.
Now since you feel deaths occurring within 17 days of vaccination are suspect (like Henry Aaron), consider that about 133,000 people died EVERY 17 days in 2019—far more than the total 6,340 you deem a smoking gun.
p.s. Do you drive a car??
Driving is FAR more dangerous (tens of thousands dead each year DIRECTLY—provably—caused by motor vehicle accidents) than even you believe Covid vaccination to be.
Covid vaccine saves lives!
@TransitRider & Dave Reid:
There are two ways to fight COVID – masks and vaccines. I’ll stick to my COVID mask and vitamin D until something better and safer comes along.