08-08-2020, 08:10 PM
(08-08-2020, 05:10 PM)ac3r Wrote:(08-08-2020, 01:26 AM)jeffster Wrote: tops doctors were arguing the effectiveness of masks, and that the general public shouldn't use them, as they offered little protection
Were they not simply advising people not to use them or seek sources of them because we were not sure to what extent hospitals were going to be hit, and so, they wanted to ensure that the general public was not panic buying them? I mean...people rushed out to buy toilet paper, bananas and meat within a week of the WHO declaring the virus a pandemic. People were also panic buying masks, sanitizer, soap and chemical disinfectants. That really worried hospitals, especially because we saw that in certain places (like NYC) they were quickly running out of PPE supplies for those who needed them.
That might be true, but the government could easily restrict sales of N95's, which was needed by the medical community. In the early stages, they said anything less than N95's were useless. There wasn't much thought given to the idea that masks could limit spread. Dr. Tam was quite vocal initially that simple masks were ineffective.
Look, I am no expert in medicine, let alone pandemics, or stopping the spread of disease. But I do have a lot of experience with PPE. 90% of the time we think of PPE as protecting ourselves. That's not always the case.
An example to think of are condoms. With healthy people, condoms offer nothing to the wearer. They do prevent the partner from getting pregnant, though. When it comes to STI's, condoms can protect both partners.
It is what it is now. And we're paying for it.