The COVID-19 prevention toolbox is small and imperfect, and at this point the three main tools at our disposal are mask-wearing, social distancing, and diagnostic testing. The easiest, cheapest, and most reliably effective at the moment is the first of these, and, yes, there is science to back this.
Why then are we so reluctant to make this happen?
There are many arguments against face masks people not wishing to wear them continue to offer: They’re uncomfortable. They’re hot. They are hard for people with claustrophobia. Or asthma. Or hearing impairment. Yes, all these things are true. Perhaps they hold some weight, or perhaps at least they warrant sympathy. It is good for people to voice these concerns, and for the rest of us to listen.
In the end, though, these objections pale in the face of the alternative. A colleague of mine quipped that his response to the complaint that it’s hard to breathe with a mask is, “If you don’t like breathing with a mask, consider what it will be like breathing on a ventilator.”
Other objections are rooted in principles that are perhaps more challenging to address. The question of personal liberty is a particularly sticky one. In our state, even more than in others, “Live free or die” is the starting point for many conversations. My response to that is that personal liberty is a fine thing when others are not harmed by my actions or inaction. When my choice to appear in public without a mask results in your serious illness or death, however, the matter appears in a very different light.
Some opponents of mask-wearing point to the fact that even groups like the World Health Organization (WHO), and Centers for Disease Control (CDC) didn’t advise masks in the early phases of the pandemic. They ask, if it wasn’t emphasized then, why should it be now? Recall that personal protective equipment (PPE) was in very short supply then, and the front line workers against the coronavirus needed all the masks they could get for their own protection. Now we know that everyone benefits from masks. Consistency of messaging is not the paramount virtue here; the health of our citizens is. Science has taught us much in the past few months.
We are all troubled and confused by the lack of clear messaging and the disregard of scientific evidence by our political leaders. Our president is sowing division on this issue by his own failure to lead. At the time of this writing, he has been seen wearing a mask in public exactly once, at Walter Reed Medical Center just this past week, more than 4 months into this pandemic.
Our governor continues to tiptoe around the matter of mask-wearing. He seems unwilling to antagonize people who feel that mask-wearing infringes on their personal freedom. Cities and towns in our state are divided on whether to mandate the use of masks in public, again worried about a backlash.
This should not be a political question. Many states have refused to view it as a political question, relying instead on the clear scientific evidence that has accumulated in favor of masks in the past few months. Only one state, Georgia, has gone in the opposite direction, although a number of Georgia cities, including Atlanta and Savannah, have opted to enforce mask-wearing based on the science. Many businesses, large and small, including Walmart, Lowe’s, Shaw’s, and Aldi, are now requiring masks, following the example of many of our local businesses.
I ask those who are distrustful of authority or whose belief system doesn’t include scientific evidence to re-examine their fears. The virus is incredibly contagious and there is no immunity once we’ve been exposed. I urge them to think of the health and safety of their loved ones, if not their own health and safety. And those who value personal liberty or support a particular leader or religious figure who assures them the worry is far overblown, that the economy and the need to return to normalcy outweigh everything else, I ask them to look again at the facts.
I ask every single one of us to open our eyes and ears, but please cover our mouths and noses, for the good of us all! It’s easy, and cheap, and right now it’s the best tool in our very small toolbox.
(Millie LaFontaine of Concord is a retired neurologist.)