General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsUnless I missed it, NO ONE in authority said masks didn't work
They only said to save them for health care workers.
If masks didn't work, every doctor and nurse would be sick.
What it means is that our government consciously led us astray because they knew there was no supply.
- If we had spent 50¢ pp for a mask?
- If we had drastically upped production domestically in January?
- If we had had leaders who set an example. If Trump had only worn one and told all his followers how cool it was?
- If we had had PSAs running round the clock - wear a mask?
THOUSANDS WOULD BE ALIVE TODAY AND NOT HAVE DIED ALONE SCARED BEYOND BELIEF
Who the fuck do we go to to answer for that?
MLAA
(17,288 posts)Demonaut
(8,915 posts)marybourg
(12,631 posts)The sub-text was: healthcare workers need them more, so we should not buy them, but they did say we didnt need them/ they would do us no good.
Laura PourMeADrink
(42,770 posts)travesty ever. It really likens to mass negligent homicide to me.
BusyBeingBest
(8,052 posts)"They'll just make you touch your face." "They'll give you a false sense of security." Blah blah. It defied logic that the same mask is vital for some people to survive and totally unnecessary--or even HARMFUL-- for the rest of us stupids.
brush
(53,776 posts)as they not only cut emissions from the wearer but also filter out and shield 95 and 99% of particulates in the air from the wearer?
Everyone else could wear surgical masks or other cloth barriers once the ppe for the med pros was filled.
Igel
(35,300 posts)Yes, it was to save the masks for health care professionals.
No, because they were around those definitely infected and infectious and for regular folk, in public? The recommendation in March was that masks were unnecessary. No reason, just unnecessary, for most people.
Then again, what could it hurt? Still, given the shortage, while it's not a drawback save them for those who need them.
Yes, no, maybe.
Only later did the two merge into the only reason the CDC ever said masks were unnecessary was to conserve them for health-care workers. CYA.
Even scarves were to be used, as last resort, for those who were taking care of a COVID patient. As of March. Before it was ridiculed, it was the CDC.
The guidance changed later. (That's fine by me. Moving situation, increased knowledge, if you don't update your guidance you're a fool. And to criticize those who got it wrong based on incomplete knowledge is to say all failure is a crime, not "some failure is simple lack of knowledge." If you're perfect, then okay, but otherwise ... Not okay.)
Buckeye_Democrat
(14,853 posts)... since early April, back when our CDC was saying similar stuff.
Here's what is written, among other stuff, at the WHO site:
https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public/when-and-how-to-use-masks
If you are healthy, you only need to wear a mask if you are taking care of a person with COVID-19.
Which begs the question, "How would asymptomatic people know they're healthy?"
It's also known that face coverings CAN help prevent infection even if you're healthy. It's not as significant as social distancing, but it generally helps.
Fox News recently tried to be deceptive about it, telling viewers that the WHO now makes that recommendation. They implied it was a recent development, rather than the WHO site just not updating. (And what's the deal with that? Are they hurting that bad financially?!)
Laura PourMeADrink
(42,770 posts)to be contagious is the exact moment the order for all to wear masks should have kicked in.
Buckeye_Democrat
(14,853 posts)... spreaders could be totally asymptomatic. It was reported in China and other places long before it hit the USA. Maybe the health officials just didn't believe those reports?
Laura PourMeADrink
(42,770 posts)astute people like you could get readily available information on the virus--why didn't the leaders of all countries?
Maraya1969
(22,479 posts)the person wearing the mask. They would only protect the other person if you were sick.
Which is bullshit.
Laura PourMeADrink
(42,770 posts)Baitball Blogger
(46,705 posts)Baitball Blogger
(46,705 posts)Conclusion, Pompeo and the State Department allowed private corporations to buy up and donate supplies to China. And, China was on a mission to scour the planet for masks, coming in as private individuals to buy our supplies directly.
So our leaders knew there would be shortages.
https://www.democraticunderground.com/100213231210
Hortensis
(58,785 posts)helpisontheway
(5,007 posts)They said they would not protect us. Only later did they say for us to wear them to protect the other person. Im trying to remember what Fauci said at that point. Their advice put us at risk. They said all of that to keep us from buying masks. Many of the people that are against wearing the mask here in VA (mandatory in VA) are resisting because of the mixed messages. I know my MIL did not listen to that from the beginning. My FIL had some leftover N95s for his projects. They wore them from day 1.
jmg257
(11,996 posts)March 2020: Dr. Anthony Fauci talks with Dr Jon LaPook about COVID-19
In March, Fauci told 60 Minutes that masks should largely be reserved for healthcare providers. In April, the recommendations were broadened to include simple masks for the general public.
On Friday, April 3, President Trump announced that the CDC now recommends Americans wear a "basic cloth or fabric mask" in public. The following was published on March 8.
When it comes to preventing coronavirus, public health officials have been clear: Healthy people do not need to wear a face mask to protect themselves from COVID-19.
How U.S. hospitals are preparing, and what leading health officials say about coronavirus
"There's no reason to be walking around with a mask," infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci told 60 Minutes.
While masks may block some droplets, Fauci said, they do not provide the level of protection people think they do. Wearing a mask may also have unintended consequences: People who wear masks tend to touch their face more often to adjust them, which can spread germs from their hands.
But there is another risk to healthy people buying disposable masks as a precaution. The price of face masks is surging, and Prestige Ameritech, the nation's largest surgical mask manufacturer, is now struggling to keep up with the increased demand.
"It could lead to a shortage of masks for the people who really need it," Fauci said.
The World Health Organization held a media briefing to update the public on the COVID-19 outbreak.
-WHO officials do not recommend mask wearing for healthy members of the general population.
-Masks should be worn by those with the disease or those in close contact with those infected.
World Health Organization (WHO) officials helped clarify how they recommend masks can best be deployed at a briefing on 30 March.
Who should wear a mask:
Those who are sick. WHO officials recommended those infected with the COVID-19 coronavirus to wear masks to prevent spreading it to someone else.
Those who are home caregivers for those who are sick. People caring for the sick should wear masks to protect themselves and to prevent further transmission
Those who are frontline healthcare workers. Right now the people most at risk from this virus are frontline healthworkers who are exposed to the virus "every second of every day", Ryan also said.
WHO officials were careful to say that the agency does not criticise countries who advise wearing masks. But at the same time, the agency was quick to stress that masks are commonly misused, and as a result, won't offer the intended protections.
The global shortage of personal protection equipment underscored the need to carefully deploy masks where they would do the most good, said Ryan.
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/03/who-should-wear-a-face-mask-30-march-who-briefing/
CDC Weighs in:
Both the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have repeatedly said that ordinary citizens do not need to wear masks unless they are sick and coughing. And as health care workers around the world face shortages of N95 masks and protective gear, public health officials have warned people not to hoard masks.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/31/health/cdc-masks-coronavirus.html
The CDC says it is now reviewing its policy and may be considering a recommendation to encourage broader use.
At the moment, the CDC website says the only people who need to wear a face mask are those who are sick or are caring for someone who is sick and unable to wear a mask.
https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/03/31/824560471/should-we-all-be-wearing-masks-in-public-health-experts-revisit-the-question
Buckeye_Democrat
(14,853 posts)That's how I recall all of them behaving back then, mostly concerned about people hoarding masks like toilet paper.
I'm not sure when companies like Amazon made it impossible to buy N95 masks without verifying the buyer was a healthcare facility or government agency, but it seemed like the switch to recommending any kind of face covering happened around the same time period -- i.e., it seemed like they waited until the better masks were secured from the general public before switching their stance on it.
Edit: By the way, thanks for finding those sources!!
jmg257
(11,996 posts)make up their own minds and not wait for idiots to tell them what to do.
You are right on Amazon too....we were home by then but it all happened end-ish of March.
April 15
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said all New Yorkers must wear face coverings when social distancing is not possible, including on public transport, in stores and on crowded sidewalks.
While that ass in the WH didn't/doesn't help - let his task force say one thing (eventually) and then undermine it all with his stupid base.
Those MAGAt idiots are still against them as "sheep" & "control"...piss me off (again).
Buckeye_Democrat
(14,853 posts)... now doesn't recommend masks, citing their website that hasn't updated since early April. (They implied it was a recent development, however.)
So there's assholes like them working against the common good too. I sometimes wonder if people like Rupert Murdoch actually HATE this country.
jmg257
(11,996 posts)Asking you to wear a mask while going to Price Chopper isn't about control! UGH!!!
And they're STILL claiming us Dems are making it worse than it is to hurt trump - 110K dead, 1000 a day die, and its still just a blown-up Dem hoax!
Like Megan Trainor say - Its all about the base - fool some of the people all of the time, and those are dumbass trumpers.
Laura PourMeADrink
(42,770 posts)jmg257
(11,996 posts)crickets
(25,976 posts)cwydro
(51,308 posts)They give them to chemo patients to wear because of the immunosuppression, so it makes no sense that they don't work.
The way they keep changing their "advice" makes me believe them even less. I'll keep doing what I think best.
Laura PourMeADrink
(42,770 posts)just a common sense point of view.
It's really negligent to say don't use a mask because you might not use it right or because it's taking from someone else who needs it.
Maybe the underlying truth will come out one day. It stinks to high heaven.