President Joe Biden on Wednesday criticized the governor of Texas and others who have relaxed pandemic restrictions, describing their actions as "Neanderthal thinking" and insisting that it is a "big mistake" for people to stop wearing masks.
The president, who has urged Americans to remain vigilant in the fight against the coronavirus, said it was critical for public officials to follow the guidance of medical doctors and public health officials as the U.S. vaccination campaign progresses.
"The last thing we need is Neanderthal thinking that in the meantime, everything's fine, take off your mask and forget it," Biden told reporters at the White House. "It's critical, critical, critical, critical that they follow the science. Wash your hands, hot water. Do it frequently, wear a mask, and stay socially distanced. And I know you all know that. I wish the heck some of our elected officials knew it."
Earlier in the day, White House press secretary Jen Psaki called on Texans and others to follow the guidance of the country's top medical officials, who have warned mayors and governors not to recklessly abandon restrictions.
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"This entire country has paid the price for political leaders who ignored the science when it comes to the pandemic," Psaki said.
Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, warned governors and mayors again Wednesday not to lift restrictions prematurely.
Her latest warning, the third in less than a week, came after officials in several states, including Texas and Mississippi, announced Tuesday that they are easing rules like mask mandates and capacity limits in businesses.
"Now is not the time to release all restrictions," Walensky said at the White House briefing.
She said the United States is at a pivotal moment when it could either quell the spread of the coronavirus through precautions and vaccinations or stoke a new surge of infections.
"So much can turn on the next few weeks," she said.
Andy Slavitt, a senior White House adviser, said health officials in every state agree that "now is the wrong time to lift the mask mandate."
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New cases, deaths and hospitalizations have been decreasing over the past week, according to a New York Times database. Compared with two weeks ago, cases were down 19%, and hospitalizations were down 29%. Deaths were down 9%. As of Tuesday, the CDC estimated that 15% of the population had received at least one dose of a virus vaccine, while nearly 8% had received both doses.
Biden said Tuesday that the nation was expected to have enough doses of vaccine available by the end of May to inoculate the whole adult population. He acknowledged that it would take longer to get everyone vaccinated.
With new virus variants spreading, Walensky urged people to wear masks, to avoid crowds and travel, and to "do the right thing to protect their own health," regardless of what their state officials dictate.
"Fatigue is winning, and the exact measures we've taken to stop the pandemic are now too often being flagrantly ignored," she said.
The World Health Organization issued its own warning Monday against easing virus restrictions too soon, particularly with the circulation of new variants.
The CDC has issued detailed guidance about reopening schools and workplaces. Walensky is most concerned about lifting mask mandates and fully reopening businesses without regard to the need for social distancing, according to one federal official familiar with her thinking.
TEXAS OPEN 100%
While many states have eased some restrictions in recent weeks, Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas, a Republican, made the most expansive move.
The impact of Abbott repealing many of the state's covid-19 restrictions -- tweeting "Texas is OPEN 100%" -- began taking shape Wednesday as businesses shed rules, city leaders plotted new safeguards and the state's 5 million schoolchildren largely remained under orders to keep wearing masks for now.
The mask mandate, which has been in place since July, and occupancy limits on restaurants and retail stores are to end Wednesday. Already, some stores announced that they still won't allow maskless customers, while social media users began tracking evolving policies on crowd-sourced spreadsheets.
Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo said his officers will continue wearing masks. He blasted Abbott over the repeal and worries about more aggressive encounters like one in December, when a customer confronted over a mask at a Houston bar smashed a glass over an employee's head.
"We can see conflict coming, sadly," Acevedo said. "And I think that a lot of this is going to be self-inflicted."
Abbott said "personal vigilance" among Texans remained essential but that mandates were no longer needed, emphasizing the increasing availability of vaccines. On Wednesday, Texas health officials announced that teachers and child care workers are now eligible to be vaccinated.
The virus has killed more than 43,000 people in Texas, behind only California and New York. Like most of the country, new cases and hospitalizations statewide have fallen rapidly in recent weeks from record levels in January. But the toll still remains significant, including nearly 300 newly reported deaths Wednesday.
Separately, a top health expert said Wednesday that Alabama "isn't out of the woods yet" with covid-19 and it's too early for Gov. Kay Ivey to lift a mask order that has been in place since July.
Dr. Sarah Nafziger, vice president of clinic support services at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, said at a news briefing that she favors retaining the requirement, which is set to expire Friday afternoon without an extension.
Hospitalizations are at the lowest point than anytime since June, and Nafziger said a reduction in testing indicates fewer people are having symptoms that prompt them to seek a test. But easing restrictions before more people are vaccinated could reverse the overall trend of improvement since mask wearing reduces illness and infection, Nafziger said.
"Is it time to do away with the mask mandate in Alabama? No," she said, adding: "We have a lot of vulnerable people in our population, and the last thing we want is for them to get sick or die."
Ivey scheduled a news conference for today to discuss the pandemic. Citing the decline in cases, Republican Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth asked Ivey to end the mask requirement, which he has opposed all along.
Gov. Tate Reeves of Mississippi, another Republican, lifted his state's mask order Tuesday, although he said he still recommended that people wear them and practice social distancing.
Democrats are slowly easing restrictions, as well. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan said her state would relax limits on nursing homes and allow restaurants, shops and other businesses to accept more customers starting Friday.
Gov. John Bel Edwards of Louisiana said bars in his state could reopen and live music could resume indoors, though the state's mask mandate would continue. And in San Francisco, Mayor London Breed said indoor dining, museums and movie theaters will be allowed to reopen Wednesday at limited capacity.
SHOTS ELIGIBILITY
Meanwhile, buoyed by a surge in vaccine shipments, states and cities are rapidly expanding eligibility for covid-19 shots to teachers, Americans 50 and over, and others as the U.S. races to beat back the virus and reopen businesses and schools.
Indiana and Michigan will begin vaccinating those 50 and over, while Arizona and Connecticut have thrown open the line to those who are at least age 55. Pennsylvania and Wisconsin are reserving the first doses of the new one-shot vaccine from Johnson & Johnson for teachers. And in Detroit, factory workers can get vaccinated starting this week, regardless of age.
Giving the vaccine to teachers and other school staff members "will help protect our communities," Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf said. "It's going to take burdens off our parents and families. It's going to make our schools get back to the business of teaching our kids."
Until now, the vaccination campaign against the outbreak that's killed over a half-million Americans has concentrated on health workers and senior citizens.
Around the U.S., politicians and school administrators have been pushing hard in recent weeks to reopen classrooms to stop students from falling behind and enable more parents to go back to work. But teachers have resisted returning without getting vaccinated.
The Department of Health and Human Services has ordered all states to make teachers, school staffs, bus drivers and child care workers eligible for shots. That's a major shift for the Biden administration, which controls access to covid-19 vaccines but previously allowed states to set their own guidelines.
Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey on Wednesday ordered students and teachers to return to school this month, saying many teachers have already received their second doses.
"The science is clear: It's time all kids have the option to return to school so they can get back on track and we can close the achievement gap," Ducey said in a statement.
The U.S. has administered more than 80 million shots in a vaccination drive now hitting its stride, according to the CDC. More than 20% of the nation's adults, or close to 52 million people, have received at least one dose, and 10% have been fully inoculated.
In Wisconsin, teachers will get priority when the state receives its first shipment of about 48,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, health authorities said. Pennsylvania teachers will likewise be first in line when an expected 94,000 doses of that formula arrive this week.
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee announced this week that educators, school staff members and child care workers can now get shots. In Texas, where teachers have been battling to gain access to shots, state officials on Wednesday ordered vaccine providers to begin administering shots to school workers.
And in Massachusetts, about 400,000 teachers, child care workers and school employees can register for vaccinations starting March 11, Gov. Charlie Baker said, though he warned that it could take time to book appointments because supplies remain limited.
Tennessee will open vaccinations Monday to an estimated 1 million people over age 16 who have high-risk health conditions and those in households with medically fragile children.
Information for this article was contributed by Michael D. Shear, Sharon LaFraniere and Eileen Sullivan of The New York Times; and by Jake Bleiberg, Paul J. Weber, Jim Vertuno, Mark Pratt, Tammy Webber, Collin Binkley, David Eggert, Ed White, John Flesher, Kimberlee Kruesi, Marc Levy, Scott Bauer, Terry Tang, Tom Davies, Alexandra Jaffe, Nancy Benac and Zeke Miller of The Associated Press.