Democrats Block Kevin McCarthy’s Resolution to Update House Mask Policies

Democrats blocked House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy’s (R-CA) resolution to update the House’s mask policies in light of the CDC’s revised guidelines.

McCarthy, along with many other House Republicans, introduced H. Res. 414, a privileged resolution that would direct Congress’s Attending Physician to update the House’s mask policies in light of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) updated guidelines on masks.

Democrats blocked the resolution on partisan lines, with 218 votes to 210 Republicans against the vote.

The resolution notes that the CDC stated that fully vaccinated Americans no longer have to wear masks indoors or outdoors.

The resolution even quotes Dr. Anthony Fauci, who said, “It is very unlikely that a vaccinated person, even if there’s a breakthrough infection, would transmit it to someone else.”

The resolution states that the House mask mandate:

… is not based on the best available science, is contrary to the latest CDDC guidance, and is not in line with the protocols in place in the United States Senate and the White House; and Wheras the continued House mask mandate hinders the ability of the House to properly and effectively conduct the people’s business.

McCarthy, Reps. Brad Wenstrup (R-OH), Andy Harris (R-MD), Michael Burgess (R-TX), and members of the House Doctors Caucus said in a joint statement Wednesday:

Last week, the CDC released guidance that actually supported the science – vaccinated individuals would no longer have to wear a mask indoors. Since the announcement, 24 states have either ended their mask mandates or have plans to do so within the next few weeks. Several private companies such as Home Depot, Harris Teeter, Target, and CVS, to name a few, are also updating guidelines that reflect the recent CDC changes. This is good news.

Operation Warp Speed helped deliver a medical breakthrough in record time — three highly effective vaccines for COVID-19. After a year of lockdowns and restrictions, Americans are yearning for normalcy, and we should celebrate the progress the vaccines have helped us achieve in just a few months.

Vaccinated Americans should have the confidence to return to their pre-pandemic routines, and the federal government should help reinforce trust in the vaccine. This should start with our leadership in Congress. That is why we are calling on Speaker Pelosi to stop politicizing science as a personal vendetta against her political opponents. Instead, she should adopt the same mask guidance from the CDC, which the White House and Senate are using as the basis for their protocols.

As elected officials, we have a responsibility to send a message to the American people that we believe in the safety and efficacy of the vaccine.

“The Speaker’s reluctance to trust the science will only help to sow distrust in the vaccines,” the Republicans concluded in their statement.