It's been about a year since the nation went under lockdown using safety protocols due to the coronavirus pandemic. Case numbers are starting to look better due to the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out, however, health officials and health experts are still urging Americans to social distance and continue to keep wearing masks. This week, Gov. Greg Abbott decided to remove the statewide mask mandate as well as open Texas completely, going against the CDC's guidelines. Some businesses are overjoyed, however, many chains such as Whataburger, Target, and Costco, have spoken up and shared that their locations will still have mask requirements.
Every Chain Requiring Texans to Wear Masks
- Whataburger
- Target
- Costco
- Sprouts
- Walmart
- Whole Foods
- Kroger
- CVS
- Walgreens
- Best Buy
- Macy's
- JCPenny
- Toyota
- GM
Chain's no longer enforcing face coverings include H-E-B and Albertsons, however, they are keeping a mask order for their employees to follow.
When does the Texas mask mandate end?
The Texas Mask Mandate ends on March 10.
Texas Governor Ends Statewide Mask Mandate
Abbott's announcement comes as 7,000 new COVID-19 cases are being reported daily as well as 200 reported deaths per day. The reopening announcement came two weeks after a deadly winter storm hit left areas of Texas such as Austin, Houston, and San Antonio without power and water for multiple days.
Clay Jenkins, the county judge of Dallas County, said the governor "absolutely" decided to reopen the state to distract residents from the sky-high electricity bills and credit card balances they faced after the storm.
"This gives people something to talk about other than the state's failure to protect the power grid," he said in an interview with CNN.
