State officials from five different states have announced throughout the past few weeks that they would be lifting their mask mandates and allowing businesses to operate at full capacity. 

Texas was one of the states that will be removing its mask mandate, which caused controversy online as the state had such a large number of cases. These five states now join 11 other states, which never had an enforced mask mandate, to no longer require masks.

The pandemic has been impacting the lives of Americans for almost a year, and people across the nation are growing tired of this new way of life. This frustration is justified, but people must continue to stay safe for the overall safety of their country. 

Although case totals across the nation have been decreasing, that is not a sign to throw caution to the wind and abandon safety precautions. 

The number of weekly COVID-19 cases in the nation has seen a significant drop since the peak of the crisis on Jan. 11. However, there are still an average of 60,000 cases per day across the United States. These numbers may not be as significant as earlier this year, but there are still many people’s lives that are being negatively impacted by an issue that can be prevented. 

Many of the supporters of the removal of mask restrictions cite the newly approved vaccines as a sign that life should go back to normal. But only 2.1 million people receive the vaccination every day in the United States, meaning that a large portion of the population remains unvaccinated. 

Therefore, the vaccine may provide hope for normalcy in the near future, but it is not readily available enough yet to support the idea of ending restrictions. 

Additionally, new variants of the disease have begun to appear in the United States that are more contagious than the original. Health officials have still not determined how to deal with these variants, so the public should do their best to avoid the spread of this disease. 

The pandemic is slowly coming to an end and people are beginning to live their lives in a more normal manner. However, states must continue to enforce safety precautions to ensure the safety of their citizens and to keep the country healthy.