POST FALLS, Idaho — Post Falls City Council rejected a requirement for people to wear masks in public as coronavirus cases surge throughout North Idaho.
Masks are currently required in Coeur d'Alene, with some exceptions, after the city council voted in favor of a mandate. Kootenai County and the state of Idaho do not require masks for residents at this time.
Post Falls residents would have been urged to "voluntarily comply" with the proposed ordinance and the city will make efforts to educate individuals and businesses to achieve compliance. People who violate the ordinance could be subject to an infraction and a fine of $100, according to the proposed ordinance.
KREM provided live updates throughout the meeting.
11:34 a.m. Kootenai Health CEO calls says it's a "real dilemma" that they don't have community support.
11:30 a.m. Council supports discussing voting on something else related to the mandate at their next meeting.
11:25 a.m. Council member Kerri Thoreson said she has anxiety about having her mouth and nose and is working with a therapist. She said she wishes they could have a mandate to "zip it,' referring to people sharing their opinion on mask wearing.
11:23 a.m. Council member Steve Anthony thanks people who do wear a mask. He said two men told him he was a "coward" for wearing a mask. He said if you wear a mask you're a "patriot."
11:18 a.m. Council President Linda Wilhelm asks for a motion to enforce a mask mandate for city staff and city visitors.
11:16 a.m. Mayor Jacobson said the city needs to do something to protect businesses, schools and hospitals. He's concerned the governor will roll them back a stage and it will shut down businesses. He said had he been required to cast a tie-breaking vote, he would have been in favor of a mandate.
11:14 a.m. Motion for mask mandate fails.
11:13 a.m. KREM phtojournalist says there is about a dozen protesters outside Post Falls City Hall.
11:11 a.m. The council talks about a resolution. Alan Wolfe asks if there's a middle ground. He suggests that they only enforce a mandate when the county is in the red risk level.
11:05 a.m. Council President Linda Wilhelm reads a statement about her research on COVID. She encourages people to wear a mask.
She thinks there will be a different federal response with the upcoming change in administration.
She thinks a mask mandate will cause more division and is not in support of the mandate. She would be in favor of mask and social distancing recommendations.
She is also in favor of a mask mandate at city facilities to protect employees.
11:02 a.m. Councilmember Lynn Borders said he worked in the healthcare field. He's concerned about getting kids back in school and enforcement of the mandate.
He said he's in favor recommending wearing a mask but not a mandate.
10:58 a.m. Councilmember Steve Anthony says he works at Kootenai Health and he's seen the impact of COVID first hand. Families bring him personal items to give to their family members who are in the COVID wing. He doesn't bring them up there personally but he makes sure they get them.
"What we do effects people." he said.
He supports the mandate.
10:52 a.m. Councilmember Joe Malloy blames the media for how the pandemic has been handled calling it "criminal." He says he knows two people who have died of COVID and he knows the virus is real and it's not the flu. He says he wears a mask in public but doesn't care if other people wear them as long as they don't get near him. He expresses concerns about enforcement due to people not wearing masks correctly.
"Forcing people to do it isn't going to solve the problem," he said.
He ends by saying he's against the mandate.
10:50 a.m. Council member Alan Wolfe said his top priorities are keeping businesses and schools open. He said he sees a mask mandate as a speeding ticket. He supports the mandate.
10:46 a.m. Council member Kerri Thoreson gives statement. She talks about what she's doing to protect herself and her neighbors from COVID-19. She says she doesn't think a mask mandate is necessary and it won't change behavior. She said it would burden police. She believes the virus "run its course."
She said she has though long and hard on deciding against the mandate.
10:41 a.m. Council member asks about social distancing. Banging and screaming continues.
10:37 a.m. Person yelling "Let me in" heard in the background during a discussion on COVID cases specifically in Post Falls. No one has addressed the screaming and banging specifically except to say they couldn't hear.
10:35 a.m. Screaming is heard in the background while doctor talks about underlying conditions impact on COVID patients.
10:30 a.m. Councilmember asks if the effectiveness of masks is a fact or an opinion. She says expert opinion is that masks slow the spread of the virus.
10:29 a.m. Councilmember asks if the hospital is making a bunch of money off COVID-19. The staff member said that isn't true.
10:27 a.m. Banging is heard while the staff member is speaking about staff shortages.
10:19 a.m. A staff member presents information on hospital capacity at Kootenai Health starting with positivity rates and COVID admissions. Over 45 COVID patients were hospitalized as of Nov. 4.
10:17 a.m. Doctor compares COVID-19 to SARS, H1N1, the seasonal flu and the 1918 flu in terms of infections and deaths.
10:13 a.m. Doctor describes how COVID-19 is spread and how masks help slow the spread.
10:09 a.m. Internal medicine doctor presents information on the local experience regarding COVID-19. She says 95 COVID-19 patients have required critical care so far and they've seen 30 deaths.
10:05 a.m. CEO of Kootenai Health talks about the hospital's perspective in caring for coronavirus patients. He says their three messages are that COVID-19 cases on the rise, they've been hovering near capacity and that the hospital is nearing capacity.
10:02 a.m. Mayor Ron Jacobson compares wearing a mask to wearing a seatbelt. He believes it does not violate anyone's constitutional rights.