2 Days After Voting To Not Require Masks, COVID-19 Shuts Down The Missouri House

St. Louis MO

15 January, 2021

9:02 PM

Description

CBS St. Louis January 15, 2021 The Missouri House of Representatives has canceled next week's session due to rising COVID-19 cases two days after voting down a measure requiring masks and social distancing. Missouri House Speaker Rob Vescovo, Missouri House Speaker Pro Tem John Wiemann and other leadership members in the House issued a joint statement on Thursday evening. "Due to the rising number of COVID-19 cases in the building, we are exercising an abundance of caution to protect members, staff and visitors by canceling sessions next week," the statement reads. "Our goal is to return to work the following week." The exact number of lawmakers infected has not been released. There's no word yet if the Missouri Senate will follow. This shutdown comes just days after the legislature reopened. Many lawmakers had no masks -- including the color guard. The Missouri House voted down a measure requiring masks and social distancing on Tuesday.