Lauren Boebert stated there hadn't been a single COVID-19 death in Texas since mask restrictions ended in March. Data shows thousands had, in fact, died.
- Rep. Lauren Boebert falsely claimed Texas hasn't recorded a single COVID-19 death in two months.
- "Since removing the mask mandate ...Texas has not reported a single COVID death," she claimed.
- Data shows 3,600 Texans lost their lives to the virus since March 2, the day restrictions were lifted.
Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado falsely claimed that Texas hasn't recorded a single COVID-19 death since it lifted mask restrictions two months ago.
Speaking to right-wing commentator Gina Loudon on "Dr.Gina Primetime" on Wednesday, Boebert ridiculed the House chamber's mask mandate and said she "enjoys" telling Speaker Nancy Pelosi to "kiss my mask."
"Leftists won't even listen to the bureaucrats at the CDC, and it just goes to show that this party's 'Follow the Science' slogan is a total joke, just like this entire administration, just like the entire Democrat Party," Boebert said, according to Right Wing Watch. "They want to tell you to listen to science and listen to data and facts, but they haven't done that for more than a year."
"Texas removed their mask mandate two months ago, and Sleepy Joe called it 'Neanderthal thinking,'" she continued. "No, sir. Republicans are just following the science, and since removing the mask mandate two months ago, Texas has not reported a single COVID death. Not one."
According to data published by the Texas Department of State Health Services, around 3,600 people have lost their lives to the virus since March 2, which was the day Texas Gov. Greg Abbott lifted all COVID-19 restrictions in the state.
More than 50,000 people have died in Texas since March 2020.
However, on May 16, the state did report its first day without recording any COVID-19 death since the beginning of the pandemic.
Dr. Wesley Long, a pathologist at Houston Methodist, told the Houston Chronicle that while this new milestone is encouraging, people must still remain vigilant and careful.
"We all want to be on the other side of the pandemic. And it's OK to feel excitement about changes in mask mandates, or about decreasing case numbers and mortality," Long said, according to the Houston Chronicle.
"But it's important to remember how we got here," Long continued. "A lot of the benefits we're seeing now are largely driven by vaccines and compliance with safety measures such as masking and social distancing."
Boebert represents Colorado's 3rd Congressional District and ran her 2020 campaign on a pro-gun platform. She owns a restaurant in the state called Shooters Grille, where the staff is encouraged to openly carry firearms.
She has previously expressed support for the QAnon conspiracy theory but denied that she is a follower of it, the Guardian reported.