Dr. Pierce believes that local jurisdictions, elected school board members, and parents should make those decisions for their students.
Salem, OR (July 30, 2021) – Republican candidate for Oregon Governor, Dr. Bud Pierce criticized Kate Brown for overreaching with her mask mandate for K-12 students. Dr. Pierce believes that local jurisdictions, elected school board members, and parents should make those decisions for their students.
On July 29, Brown released a statement directing the Oregon Health Authority and the Oregon Department of Education to create a rule that requires masks indoors for students in the upcoming school year.
Dr. Pierce has been a strong advocate for vaccinations and has carefully followed the science. He has repeatedly said that our children “should return to an in-class learning environment.”
In response to the mandate, Dr. Pierce said, “Science has demonstrated that children are resilient if they contract COVID-19. The two-shot vaccines have demonstrated a 99.9% effectiveness rate in preventing symptomatic COVID-19 infection in immunized adults. I have many concerns about Gov. Brown creating this mandate, at this time, for every student in the state. We need to trust our local elected officials and parents. We should not have our children learning in a fear-based environment.”
Not all communities have the same level of risk. Dr. Pierce believes that regulations should be based on actual vaccination rates, the number of students in a given school district, and the area’s population size.
“Local officials and parents know their children and communities the best. A COVID-19 safety plan driven by local officials increases community buy-in and more accurately reflects a community’s actual safety needs,” Dr. Pierce said.
Dr. Pierce added, “My concern is that the Governor will put the burden on teachers to be ‘mask enforcers’ instead of educators. Governor Brown has failed to provide clear leadership, consistent messaging, and practical advice throughout this entire pandemic.”
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Bud Pierce, M.D, Ph.D. is a business owner and senior partner of Oregon Oncology Specialists, one of the last physician-owned practices on the West Coast. He announced his candidacy for governor on the Republican ticket in April 2021. Approved photos and biography can be found at www.BudPierce.org/newsroom. To arrange an interview with Dr. Pierce, email [email protected].