
CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker says people should get used to wearing a mask in public, for awhile longer.
Pritzker on Monday said COVID-19 mitigation measures, such as wearing face coverings and social-distancing with strangers, will have an end date — likely sometime in 2021.
“We’re not going to be able to take off the mask and go about everything we were doing seven, eight months ago for a few more months — maybe six-plus months,” the governor said at an appearance in Quincy.
Adams County, where Quincy is located, is among four Illinois counties that have triggered a “warning” from state health officials, based on their rising coronavirus metrics.
Early in the pandemic, political leaders and health experts held off on recommending people wear masks covering their nose and mouths outside their homes, in part to prevent people from hoarding medical-grade supplies.
In May, Illinois began requiring residents to don masks in public, at least in situations where they cannot maintain a 6-foot distance from others.