

Before and After versions of Ohio Department of Health flyers

Before (left) and after versions of an Ohio Department of Health flyer laying out safety restrictions for re-opening retail businesses. The flyer was modified after the initial version was shared Monday, April 27 at Gov. Mike DeWine's coronavirus briefing.


COLUMBUS, Ohio -- “No mask, no work, no service, no exception,” Gov. Mike DeWine said on Monday, describing his administration’s safety regulations for manufacturers and retailers that will re-open in May.

DeWine was reading from an Ohio Department of Health sign during his daily coronavirus briefing at the Statehouse. Elsewhere in the briefing he described masks and other facial coverings as mandatory for employees, but perhaps optional for customers.

But as of Tuesday, Ohio Department of Health officials have modified their guidance for businesses — saying now that the face masks are recommended for customers, but not mandatory. During his Tuesday coronavirus briefing, DeWine said they were optional for workers, but the governor’s office later said they’d be largely required for workers, with exceptions.

DeWine discussed the about-face in an interview with a Cincinnati radio station on Tuesday afternoon.

“I understand some people may find that offensive, the government telling you what to do,” DeWine told WLW’s Bill Cunningham. "So what we’re going to say is we really recommend that you do this but if you want to walk in without one, that’s fine.”

DeWine elaborated on the about-face in his Tuesday briefing. He cited a call he got Monday evening from a woman with an autistic child for whom a mask would present difficulties.

“We made a decision that for retail customers, this is not going to be mandated. Government’s not going to mandate it,” DeWine said. "…I emphasize, I heard you, and we’re not going to mandate this. We’re going to leave it up to the individual customer.”

He said wearing a mask is still a best practice, and something he will do himself when he goes out shopping.

“Although it is not a mandate now, it’s clearly in the best interest of Ohioans to wear them in retail. It’s an added protection,” he said.

While DeWine framed the mandate-to-recommendation switch as how it would affect shoppers, an updated flier produced by the Ohio Department of Health also states it is now only optional for employers to require them of retail, construction and manufacturing workers.

Updated Ohio Department of Health flyer

An updated flyer from the Ohio Department of Health describing face coverings as optional for construction and manufacturing employees.

During his coronavirus briefing, DeWine said it will be up to individual companies to decide their own policies.

“The business group, let’s say it’s a retail company, they can make a decision that everybody that comes in the door, whether it’s a sales person a delivery person or a customer, that they need to wear a protective covering," he said.

However the governor’s office later released a statement saying masks “would still be mandated for employees unless wearing a face covering is not advisable by a healthcare professional, goes against industry best practices, or is not permitted by federal or state laws and regulations."

Under DeWine’s plan, manufacturers and offices that may have closed under a DeWine administration health order will re-open on May 4, and retailers will re-open on May 12.

Employers that do re-open will be required to enact strict hygiene protocols and limit capacity, among other changes.

DeWine said he designed his plan, which met criticism from some conservative lawmakers pushing for more, trying to strike a balance between re-starting the economy and limiting the spread of the coronavirus amid ongoing state testing limitations.