Ohio state Rep. Nino Vitale (R) on Tuesday encouraged his constituents to “stop getting tested” for COVID-19.

In a Facebook post, Vitale suggested that the government is using COVID-19 tests to create a “dictatorship.”

“Are you tired of living in a dictatorship yet?” Vitale asked. “This is what happens when people go crazy and get tested. STOP GETTING TESTED!”

“It is giving the government an excuse to claim something is happening that is not happening at the magnitude they say it is happening,” he continued. “Have you noticed they never talk about deaths anymore, just cases? And they never talk about recoveries. They just keep adding to numbers they have been feeding us from over 3 months ago!”

Along with his remarks, the Republican lawmaker included a graphic with a list of the Ohio counties where a mask will soon be required. The graphic included a message encouraging people to “never get tested.”

Ohio Republican state rep Nino Vitale, discouraging his constituents from being tested for #COVID19. pic.twitter.com/SBDgtTJN68

— Dr. Tara C. Smith (@aetiology) July 7, 2020