House Republican Leader Todd Gilbert issued the following statement:

“Leadership means making and owning tough decisions. That’s the exact opposite of what we saw yesterday from Governor Northam. Rather than simply announcing that he will require masking of vaccinated students and teachers in K-12 schools, he instead decided to hide behind a false interpretation of a law that already delayed the reopening of schools to this fall.

“If you’re going to make an unpopular decision, Governor, don’t try to skirt responsibility by lying to Virginians. Your weak leadership and inconsistent messaging are just two reasons so many people don’t trust the safe and effective vaccines that are the real way out of this pandemic.”