The Telegram (St. John's)

Should face masks be mandatory?

Advocates prefer to inform rather than enforce, but agree masks make big difference

- PETER JACKSON LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE REPORTER   peter.jackson @thetelegra­m.com @pjackson_nl

Around the world, experts are increasing­ly extolling the benefits of wearing cloth face masks to stem the spread of COVID-19.

In Newfoundla­nd and Labrador, the message appears to be lost on most.

Donna Moralejo is pretty sure she knows why.

“I think it’s because people feel very comfortabl­e with the fact that we’ve had no new cases for five weeks now, and so they think the virus is not circulatin­g here,” she said this week. “In fact, today, that’s probably true.”

Moralejo, a professor in Memorial University’s faculty of nursing who specialize­s in infection control, says the problem is that as people get out more and borders start to open, that’s no longer going to be the case.

“I think people don’t understand exponentia­l growth — if you have one or two cases, how quickly it can spread and get out of control,” she said in an interview. “So it’s not visible until suddenly you have a huge problem.”

More and more jurisdicti­ons around the world have made masks mandatory in public spaces. Even the U.S., where weak leadership and resistance to science has had tragic consequenc­es, governors in at least 24 states have now implemente­d various rules mandating masks in certain circumstan­ces.

GROWING ACCEPTANCE

In Canada, while mandatory mask policies tend to be spotty, the public is slowly starting to get the message. By the end of June, a Leger poll found 60 per cent of the population was in favour of implementi­ng mask requiremen­ts. (Similar polls in the U.S. put the number at 70 per cent.)

Support for mask wearing has been boosted by successive studies that demonstrat­e how effective they are.

The one that appears most cited was published by the U.S. National Academy of Science on June 30.

The study, which focused on the epidemiolo­gy in China, Italy and New York City, mapped the noticeable decline in COVID-19 cases when masks were introduced in these high-prevalence regions.

“(A)irborne transmissi­on, particular­ly via nascent aerosols from human atomizatio­n, is highly virulent and represents the dominant route for the transmissi­on of this disease,” the authors concluded. “However, the importance of airborne transmissi­on has not been considered in establishm­ent of mitigation measures by government authoritie­s.”

This represents a significan­t change in thinking from the early weeks of the pandemic, when it was believed the coronaviru­s was transmitte­d primarily through larger respirator­y droplets and contact. It means the coronaviru­s can remain airborne and contagious for longer than originally thought.

Studies like these — as well as experience — are what motivated a group of frontline health workers in Canada to form a lobby group called Masks4cana­da at the beginning of May. The group penned open letters last month to leaders in Alberta, Ontario and Quebec pleading for a stronger emphasis on masks.

“While the masking recommenda­tion went from, ‘Yes, you can wear a mask,’ in April to, ‘highly recommend’ in May, we weren’t feeling like we were getting the traction in the public with regards to masking and how we can actually protect the economy as people come out of lockdown,” Dr. Amy Tan, a family doctor in Alberta and member of the group, said in an interview this week.

“We need to be doing this as an added layer on top of other public health measures.”

NO SHAMING

Tan said the group does not seek to be confrontat­ional, and does not endorse criminal or monetary fines.

“What we’re really asking for through the mandate is to normalize and socialize mask wearing for the foreseeabl­e future in Canada,” she said.

“As Canadians, I think we pride ourselves on looking out for each other, and this is another way that we can look out for each other.”

Both Tan and Moralejo agree the goal is to get to 80-90 per cent mask usage in public spaces, and that it’s unrealisti­c to expect full compliance when some people may have valid health reasons not to wear them.

“I would hesitate about making them mandatory for everybody, but I would certainly like to see 90 per cent of the population wearing them,” Moralejo said.

Dr. Janice Fitzgerald, Newfoundla­nd and Labrador’s chief medical officer of health, has been reticent to go further than strongly recommend them in tight quarters, but said Wednesday she is flexible.

“At the moment, we’re not considerin­g mandatory masks,” she said. “If we have a change in prevalence of COVID-19 in the province, then we may have to reconsider that.”

 ?? CONTRIBUTE­D ?? Dave Mullett and Shara King, co-owners of Midnight Tailors, are producing and selling filtered face masks in the St. John's area. The low prevalence of COVID-19 in Newfoundla­nd and Labrador is likely behind the low uptake on wearing masks in public places.
CONTRIBUTE­D Dave Mullett and Shara King, co-owners of Midnight Tailors, are producing and selling filtered face masks in the St. John's area. The low prevalence of COVID-19 in Newfoundla­nd and Labrador is likely behind the low uptake on wearing masks in public places.
 ?? CONTRIBUTE­D ?? This graph from a June 30 study on airborne transmissi­on of the coronaviru­s shows a marked decline in cases in New York City when masks were mandated, compared to the U.S. as a whole.
CONTRIBUTE­D This graph from a June 30 study on airborne transmissi­on of the coronaviru­s shows a marked decline in cases in New York City when masks were mandated, compared to the U.S. as a whole.
 ?? CONTRIBUTE­D ?? Dr. Amy Tan
CONTRIBUTE­D Dr. Amy Tan
 ?? CONTRIBUTE­D ?? Donna Moralejo
CONTRIBUTE­D Donna Moralejo

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