Utah Gov. Gary Herbert is considering a statewide mask mandate and is planning expanded coronavirus to fight a recent surge of virus cases in the state.
The Republican governor says he is alarmed by the increase, much of it in Utah County. And an infectious disease specialist says the surge was probably driven by high school and colleges resuming in-person learning. Dr. Eddie Stenehjem of the Intermountain Healthcare says that could lead to increased hospitalizations for older people in coming weeks. Over the past two weeks, the rolling average number of daily new Utah coronavirus cases has increased about 54%.