New Emergency Order Requires Face Coverings For Those Over Age 5

MADISON, WI – Any person in Wisconsin who is over the age of 5 is now required to wear a face covering if they are indoors and with people who are not part of their immediate household, officials announced this week.

Governor Tony Evers signed a new executive order establishing a statewide public health emergency and an emergency order establishing a face covering requirement on Tuesday.

The public health emergency will be in effect for 60 days or until it is revoked.

The face covering emergency order required anyone over the age of 5 to wear a face covering while indoors or in an enclosed space other than their residence and when around a person who is not a part of their immediate household. The order expires on March 20.

There are exemptions to the face covering requirement, which say residents can take their face covering off when eat or drinking, communicating with someone who is deaf or hard of hearing, sleeping, swimming, when federal or state law prohibits it, or when necessary to confirm someone's identity.

In addition, children between the ages of 2 and 5 are encouraged, but not required, to wear a face covering when physical distancing is not possible.

"We're working every day to get vaccines distributed and get shots in arms to get our state back to some sort of normal," Evers said in a prepared statement.

As of Tuesday, Wisconsin had administered 248,185 vaccines across the state and began administering vaccines in Phase 1B to first responders and law enforcement. Wisconsinites 65 years or older will also be eligible for the vaccine starting on Monday.