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Face-covering policies under review in Nevada as COVID-19 cases rise

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NEVADA (KTNV) — Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak has asked his medical advisory team to review enhanced face-covering policies for Nevadans, after an increase of coronavirus cases in the state.

Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak considering enhanced face-covering policies

And a few local businesses are already taking action against COVID-19 in asking their customers to wear a mask inside - like Nakata Market of Japan.

The manager of the small business posted a sign outside asking customers to wear one, and he says so far, no one has complained.

"Some businesses force customers to wear a mask, but we didn't want to do that. So, we keep encouraging customers to wear a mask, and I would say that 80-90 percent of customers wear a face covering, and we really appreciate that," said manager Tomonari Sagami.

And his employees wear a mask too.

However, not everyone is wearing a mask when it comes to Nevadans, and this is something Dr. Jeffrey Ng is also aware of it.

"I'm wondering what's happening. People are kind of relaxing a little bit, and this is not the time to relax. This is the time to say vigilant, to be wearing a mask because we don't want a spike in cases and force another shutdown," said Dr. Ng. "I don't think it will happen, at least we hope it doesn't happen, but if we get a large spike, you're pushing the limit."

The Southern Nevada Health District also released the following statement:

"We know cloth face coverings can be effective for slowing the transmission of the virus and are encouraged that more stringent measures are being considered to protect our residents and visitors."

According to the latest numbers from the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services, 12,486 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in the state of Nevada. There have been 478 deaths.

Nevada Health Response has repeatedly urged the use of face coverings when out in public.

Multiple cities across Arizona announce plans to implement face mask requirements