History shows the price of removing health mandates

The omicron covid-19 variant is still surging around the world, but while mask mandates have been embraced in Europe and other high-income nations, the US is debating whether to remove them altogether. New York state is the latest to strike down its governor’s mask mandate as unconstitutional and prominent voices, including former Food and Drugs Administration commissioner Scott Gottlieb, advocate removing mask mandates. With a reduction in new cases of covid-19 and overall conditions improving, continuing to wear masks in public places or schools is just too much of an inconvenience, according to mask-mandate opponents.