Cass Co. commissioners abruptly cancel meeting opposing mask mandates

CASSOPOLIS, Mich. -- The Cass County Board of Commissioners planned to have a special meeting Tuesday night addressing potential mask mandates, but it was then cancelled just a few hours before it was set to start.

There was going to be an opportunity for public comment and the potential for commissioners to pass a resolution opposing mask mandates.

Talk was also circulating around the community about a special meeting by the Van Buren-Cass District Health Department being scheduled for Wednesday morning.

Health Officer Danielle Persky said they received multiple calls from concerned residents, but there was no meeting planned.

The Board of Health’s most recent one was last week, where a mask mandate for K-6 students fell short of votes needed to pass.

In a statement to ABC57, Persky said,

“While I can move forward with my authority on this, I am pausing momentarily. It is my goal to be cooperative, focus on what’s best for the health of our community and keep the fight on COVID not politics. I am watching the situation closely and not removing a public health order to require masks off the table completely.”

The Board of Commissioners had released a notice about a special session Tuesday to “rescind the local emergency order, support medical autonomy and oppose mask mandates by the health department or any other entity.”

While commissioners could not give a reason for why they cancelled the meeting, they said the mask topic will be on the agenda for their regularly scheduled meeting on September 2 at 6:30.