Texas, Miss. lift mask mandates, allow businesses to reopen at 100%

Tasha Arevalo, right, laughs with Joseph Butler while eating at Mo’s Irish Pub, Tuesday, March 2, 2021, in Houston. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced that he is lifting business capacity limits and the state’s mask mandate starting next week. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Mississippi and Texas are ready to put the pandemic behind them and let the reopening begin.

On Tuesday, Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves (R) ordered all statewide mask mandates to be lifted starting on Wednesday. However, mask mandates at K-12 schools are set to remain in effect.

Reeves also announced businesses will be allowed to reopen at full capacity, but business owners will be allowed to enforce any safety precautions if they choose to do so. He went on to tout the state’s declining coronavirus numbers and hospitalizations.

Meanwhile, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) also unveiled a plan to reopen all businesses and to end the mask mandate in his state. Businesses will be able to reopen at 100 percent capacity starting on March 10.

Abbott said residents are responsible for keeping themselves safe and must use common sense as well as their best judgment to avoid infections The governor also highlighted the Lone Star State has seen the lowest rate of new infections in months while hospitalizations have dramatically reduced.

Meanwhile, Montana and Iowa have also lifted statewide mask mandates while the state of Massachusetts recently allowed businesses to reopen at full capacity.