As Covid-19 cases and deaths keep climbing to new highs by the day, Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas — one of the first states to reopen — said the coronavirus and the disease are “spreading at an unacceptable rate and it must be corralled.”

“Speaking at a news conference, Abbott said Texas is now averaging about 3,500 new cases a day, compared to only 1,500 new cases in the last half of May,” reports the Washington Post. “Additionally, the rate of positive tests has gone up to more than 9 percent.”

Abbott urged Texans to wear protective masks in public — but he still refused to make it a statewide order.

Governor asks that Texans wear masks. "Our goal is to keep Texans out of hospitals and to reduce the number of Texans who test positive…COVID hasn't simply gone away. We don't have to choose between jobs and health. We can have both."

— Tony Plohetski (@tplohetski) June 22, 2020

The governor “acknowledged that some people feel wearing a mask infringes on their freedom,” but said “wearing a mask will help us keep Texas open.”

He said that reinstating a stay-at-home order “will always be the last option.”

Meanwhile, counties across the state, including Dallas, Harris (Houston), Travis (Austin), Bexar (San Antonio) and El Paso, are ordering businesses to require masks for employees and customers, reports the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Nationwide, 29 states and territories have reported spikes in Covid-19 infections since Memorial Day, most to record levels.

Last week, California Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered masks to be worn in most public places; on Thursday Newsom was joined by all the state’s living ex-governors in a public service announcement urging residents to abide by the rule.

In its latest report, the Johns Hopkins Covid-19 Tracker reported that well over 2,250,000 Americans have tested positive for the virus and 120,225 have died.