CNN "CNN Newsroom" - Transcript: Interview with Andy Beshear

Interview

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BROWN: And joining me now is the Democratic governor of Kentucky, Andy Beshear.

Governor, thanks for coming on. You were listening to that. I want to get your reaction to what Dr. Bolding just told me about the dire situation in his hospital.

GOV. ANDY BESHEAR (D-KY): Well, Pamela, Dr. Bolding is incredible. He's one of our health care heroes. And if I could tell him two things, number one is thank you. You're right. For 15, 13 months, they walked into COVID units without a vaccine knowing that they could contract the virus and they could take it home to their families. That bravery is incredible. But the second thing I'd say is, don't burn out because we need you too much.

Even with the setback we're dealing with right now, we need your help. You all have been the very best of us. The very best of us during this crisis, during this pandemic. And we need you to help get us through. But oh, my goodness. Whether it's there in Arkansas or all our health care heroes in Kentucky, we owe them a huge debt of gratitude.

BROWN: We certainly do. And Governor, you're not ruling out a future mask mandate. You said you will rely on science to determine if it's needed. What will be the tipping point for that decision?

BESHEAR: Well, where we are right now is that we have some very strong recommendations. Stronger than in most states. Number one, all unvaccinated individuals should be wearing a mask when they're outside their homes and indoors. The Delta variant is serious. It can be deadly to those unvaccinated. You ought to wear one to protect yourself and those around you.

Number two, if you're immunocompromised or you have one of these pre- existing conditions that COVID comes for, you ought to put that mask back on. And number three, if you work in the hospitality, restaurant, retail, where you're just seeing hundreds of people each day, your chances because of all those interactions go up. So even if you are vaccinated, we strongly recommend that you wear a mask.

But what we're looking at are a number of different factors. First there are the cases. And that's concerning. But second, there is the hospitalizations. There's those that end up on a ventilator, which we don't want to see. And then there is even the breakdown of the vaccinated versus unvaccinated. And how many breakthrough or reinfection cases that we're seeing.

Thankfully, I've got a great team of scientists, of doctors, of strong public health, strong hospital systems. And we listened. We're going to have the courage to do what's necessary but it's really clear where we are right now. There is one and only one answer. Get vaccinated. It protects you from the most aggressive form of COVID that we have ever seen. It provides you huge protection.

And this isn't just me. I didn't just get vaccinated. I brought my wife Brittney who I love more than life itself. When my son turned 12, this is about two months ago, we took him the day after his birthday. I would never stand next to those two individuals if I didn't know, not just believe it, know these vaccines are safe. Please get vaccinated. Get your family vaccinated.

And at the point where we are right now, Pamela, I know people aren't just going to take my word for it. We need friends stepping up and talking to their friends who are unvaccinated. You want those people to be around at the next holiday.

You want to be able to have them over to your house. We want to be back to normal. This is the point where if you really care about someone and you know they're unvaccinated, I need you to talk to them. And it's going to be uncomfortable, it's not going to be easy but it's their life and our way of life that is at risk.

BROWN: You mentioned your son. I know you have two children. School age children.

BESHEAR: Yes.

BROWN: School will be opening up in no time, frankly, in Kentucky. I mean, it's right around the corner.

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Do you think that schools should require masks for the kids? Because so many of these kids will be unvaccinated and we know what can happen.

BESHEAR: So we're going to be providing some recommendations for our school systems tomorrow. But let me say this. I have a 12-year-old son who is vaccinated. I have an 11-year-old daughter who is unvaccinated. My daughter is going to be wearing a mask when she goes to school. And that is for her own safety.

But let's just look at the basic science, or if could you do the basic math. An entire class of unvaccinated children isn't going to make it through the school year in person every day. So we're going to have to step back as parents and decide what we care about the most. Is it truly that our kids are in class where they need to be every single day? Or it's whether an argument that parents want to have with parents about masks?

Are we going to put our kids first? Are we going to do what it takes to make sure that they can stay in the classroom? Or are we going to make this a red or a blue or a Democrat or Republican or some culture war thing? I mean, honestly, let's just try to make sure our kids can get the best experience they can when their education is at stake.

BROWN: All right. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear from my home state, thank you so much for coming on.

BESHEAR: Thank you. We're proud of you.

BROWN: Thank you. I'll actually be home in Kentucky soon.

BESHEAR: We look forward to it.

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