'Your Own Darn Fault': Colorado Gov. Polis Blasts The Unvaccinated, Declares COVID-19 Emergency 'Over'

Colorado Governor Jared Polis, a Democrat, has declared in an interview that the COVID-19 emergency is “over,” and said that if unvaccinated people get infected with coronavirus, it’s their “own darn fault.”

Speaking at the Colorado Public Radio’s “Colorado Matters” show Friday, Polis said he won’t be implementing another statewide mask mandate amid the spread of the highly transmissible Omicron variant. He argued that “everybody had more than enough opportunity to get vaccinated,” pointing out that vaccines are available at pharmacies and various other big events.

“At this point, if you haven’t been vaccinated, it’s really your own darn fault,” Polis said after host Ryan Warner asked why he refuses to impose a state-wide mask mandate despite a recent uptick in cases in the area.

Warner went on to ask if Polis believes that vaccination marks the end of mask mandates in Colorado. “We see it as the end of the medical emergency. Frankly, people who want to be protected [have gotten vaccinated.] Those who get sick, it’s almost entirely their own darn fault,” the governor responded. Polis added that if people are still unvaccinated at this point, “I think it’s almost like they made a deliberate decision not to get vaccinated.”

Also in the said interview, Polis said “public health [officials] don’t get to tell people what to wear; that’s just not their job.” However, hours after CPR published the transcript of his interview, the Colorado governor’s office released a statement on the matter, walking back on Polis’ earlier comments.

“Of course, he believes that local leaders can and should put disease reduction protocols in place based off their disease levels and community support of those policies,” the statement read, adding that Polis “continues to encourage Coloradans to wear masks indoors and avoid large gatherings.” Polis has been resisting calls for a state-wide mask mandate.

Last month, local public health leaders sent letters to the Colorado governor’s office, urging him to issue a state-wide mask mandate The Colorado Sun reported. The groups that sent letters includes the Colorado Association of Local Public Health Officials, Metro Denver Partnership for Health, the Colorado Medical Society, and San Juan Basin Public Health.

Despite some states issuing mask mandates to reduce fears surrounding the Omicron variant, Polis reiterated that the best way through the ordeal was getting more people vaccinated.

Polis also said that Colorado hospitals were “full of people who are unvaccinated,” joining some officials who believe the state’s COVID-19 crisis was a “pandemic of the unvaccinated.” The governor has been insisting that getting vaccinated is a matter of personal responsibility to protect oneself and others.

Colorado has reported a total of 854,084 confirmed COVID-19 cases and more than 9,800 deaths linked to the disease. More than 9,000,000 vaccines have been administered across the state, and 3,737,894 Coloradans are fully vaccinated.