Letter to the editor: The idea that a piece of cloth will stop COVID-19 is ridiculous

Posted

I’m writing in response to the commentary by Association of Washington Business President Kris Johnson titled “Face masks save lives and jobs.” 

In his commentary his only justification for mandatory masks is a reference to recent, unnamed studies, and a quote from the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stating that he believes the pandemic could be brought under control if “we could get everybody to wear a mask right now.” 

Pardon me if I need more than that. 

Every time I am in public, I see all sorts of things tied around people’s faces. Scarves, bandanas, surgical masks, homemade masks and a few N-95 masks. I’ve even seen a gal wearing a crocheted mask. I’ve seen people play with their masks, wearing them under their nose or down on their chin, gapping all over the place, and a couple that were so dirty I wonder if they retrieved it off of the floor and stuck it on their face. I’ve heard others say, “I’m glad you’re all wearing your masks. I’m not because, y’know, first amendment.” 

I’ve seen Dr. Anthony Fauci take his mask off when he thinks the cameras aren’t rolling. The thought that any old piece of cloth tied around your face will slow the spread of COVID-19 in my mind is ridiculous. But that’s not just my opinion. According to an article in the New England Journal of Medicine titled Universal Masking in Hospitals in the Covid-19 Era, “Public health authorities define a significant exposure to COVID-19 as face-to-face contact within 6 feet with a patient with symptomatic COVID-19 that is sustained for at least a few minutes (and some say more than 10 minutes or even 30 minutes). The chance of catching COVID-19 from a passing interaction in a public space is therefore minimal. In many cases, the desire for widespread masking is a reflexive reaction to anxiety over the pandemic.“ In a study titled, Non-Pharmaceutical Measures for Pandemic Influenza in Non-Healthcare Settings — Personal and Environmental Measures from the CDC states, “In pooled analysis, we found no significant reduction in influenza transmission with the use of face masks.” 



And in an article by Dr. Denis G Rancourt called “The Science is Conclusive: Masks and Respirators Do Not Prevent Transmission of Viruses” he cites seven different studies asking if there is any benefit for widespread mask wearing and states, “There have been extensive randomized controlled trial (RCT) studies, and meta-analysis reviews of RCT studies, which all show that masks and respirators don’t work to prevent respiratory influenza-like illnesses, or respiratory illnesses believed to be transmitted by droplets and aerosol particles.” 

Mr. Johnson goes on to state that COVID-19 cases are trending upward but so are the number of people being tested and deaths are going down. 

Could it be that the number of cases is going up because they’re testing more people? I’m not a doctor but I wonder, could this be herd immunity? Masks are not going to stop COVID-19 nor will it save jobs.