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Fauci: Mask-wearing recommendation under 'very serious consideration' [Quotes.]
Politico ^ | March 31, 2020 | Quint Forgey

Posted on 03/31/2020 3:09:54 PM PDT by familyop

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, revealed on Tuesday that White House coronavirus task force is seriously considering guidance that all Americans wear masks to help thwart the disease's spread.

But Fauci also acknowledged that such a directive has been complicated by the nationwide dearth of personal protective equipment.

"The idea of getting a much more broad, community-wide use of masks outside of the health care setting is under very active discussion at the task force. The CDC group is looking at that very carefully," Fauci told CNN.

"The thing that has inhibited that a bit is to make sure that we don't take away the supply of masks from the health care workers who need them," he continued. "But once we get in a situation where we have enough masks, I believe there will be some very serious consideration about more broadening this recommendation of using masks."

Fauci cautioned that "we're not there yet," but said he believed the task force was "close to coming to some determination" on whether to expand the administration's recommended mitigation measures to include masks.

"Because if, in fact, a person who may or may not be infected wants to prevent infecting someone else, one of the best ways to do that is with a mask. So perhaps that's the way to go," he said, adding that the subject was "under very active consideration" and would be raised at the task force's meeting on Tuesday afternoon.

Some public health experts, including former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner and informal administration adviser Scott Gottlieb, have suggested that encouraging the wearing of masks in public could help curb the rapid rate of COVID-19 infection in the United States, .

President Donald Trump on Monday said he had taken note of the proposal, outlined in a recent report Gottlieb co-authored, and that it could be possible that Americans will be directed to wear masks "for a short period of time."

"We'll take a look at it. For a period of time, not forever. I mean, you know, we want our country back. We're not going to be wearing masks forever," Trump said at the task force's daily press briefing.

The president also told reporters that "we're getting certainly the number of masks that you'd need" to implement the guidance — an assessment which Fauci appeared to disagree with on Tuesday.

"You don't want to take masks away from the health care providers who are in a real and present danger of getting infected," he said. "That would be the worst thing we do. If we have them covered, then you could look back and say, 'Maybe we need to broaden this.'"


TOPICS: Health/Medicine
KEYWORDS: facemasks; fauci; n95; ppe
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To: familyop

I found a box of N95 masks we had in the garage, and no I’m not going to be wearing them for corona.


41 posted on 03/31/2020 4:48:47 PM PDT by dynoman (Objectivity is the essence of intelligence. - Marilyn vos Savant)
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To: familyop

Masks prevent you from giving it to someone else not you from everyone else.

If they mandate them, I refuse to go out of the house.


42 posted on 03/31/2020 4:59:55 PM PDT by dila813
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To: dila813

That’s kind of silly. Masks do a lot to prevent you from touching your own nose or mouth with your inadvertently contaminated hands - which we do routinely and unconsciously.

And the advice that ‘masks can’t keep you from catching a germ’ means that they can’t keep you from catching every POSSIBLE germ. But they can keep you from many of the ones that you might encounter.


43 posted on 03/31/2020 5:08:37 PM PDT by Jamestown1630 ("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
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To: dila813

“Masks prevent you from giving it to someone else not you from everyone else.”

Why would a properly fitted and clean N95 combined with eye protection and gloves, and properly handled at removal, not protect you? The manufacturers (e.g. 3M) certainly do claim they will.


44 posted on 03/31/2020 5:09:40 PM PDT by steve86 (Prophecies of Maelmhaedhoc O'Morgair (Latin form: Malachy))
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To: metmom

Masks might be perceived as being more of a norm in some regions than others, especially where concealed carry is also a norm. Less fear of robberies and fashion, maybe?


45 posted on 03/31/2020 5:17:23 PM PDT by familyop ("Welcome to Costco. I love you." - -Costco greeter in the movie, "Idiocracy")
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To: madison10

What’s a ‘male’ or ‘female’ color?

(Excluding pink and lavender, of course...)


46 posted on 03/31/2020 5:21:39 PM PDT by Jamestown1630 ("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
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To: steve86

That’s not what they are talking about doing, yes all that gear would protect you to a large extent.

Where it fails is, is the person falsely thinks they are perfectly protected and doesn’t engage in hand washing and transfers the infection to themselves from a surface (could be the gear they were wearing) on to themselves or puts themselves more at risk and gets exposed through close contact with someone not similarly protected (person removing their mask to sneeze).


47 posted on 03/31/2020 5:27:28 PM PDT by dila813
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To: Jamestown1630

they eyes, you get it through your eyes...


48 posted on 03/31/2020 5:28:48 PM PDT by dila813
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To: familyop

I swear I heard the Surgeon General say that masks for the masses was/is not effective....
That was this (TUES) morning on WMAL/DC

NOW, since we are in such short supply I can see the ‘masters’ saying ANYONE on the street or out of the house WITHOUT a mask will be arrested on the spot.

They are clearing out the jails so they will have room to lock up people in public WITHOUT a mask.

I thought there were very stringent laws inre wearing masks in public??

‘WE’ could all make a game of it and wear Ronald Reagan or PDJT masks...that will get the snowflakes ‘melting’ in a hurry.....


49 posted on 03/31/2020 5:37:48 PM PDT by xrmusn (6/98"HRC is the Grandmother that lures Hansel & Gretel to the pot")
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To: dila813

Wear goggles, if you are very worried about every possible orifice and every possible germ.

I think it’s very useful to wear the mask to protect you from the most likely routes of infection - especially if you are also being careful about distancing and keeping your hands clean and off of your face. It also protects others in the event that you are shedding.

There’s no perfection in this world; but there is a lot we can do to mitigate danger.

Personally, I kind of enjoy the ‘bandit’ look. Whenever in my life would I have otherwise had an opportunity to go about like that? I’m not really into robbing banks or Old West trains :-)


50 posted on 03/31/2020 5:40:02 PM PDT by Jamestown1630 ("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
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To: Truthoverpower

I think that it would be fine if a business required anyone coming into wear a mask. Movie theaters are a place I would be happy to wear one. But they would probably be terrified of losing concession sales due to inhibiting eating.

I do expect movie theaters to cordon off every other couple of seats to create 6-feet distancing. So it’s going to be harder to get a seat for a hot movie. But I think the vast majority of movie screenings do not play to packed houses so shouldn’t be a huge economic impact.


51 posted on 03/31/2020 5:42:49 PM PDT by JediJones (We must deport all liberals until we can figure out what the hell is going on.)
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To: Jamestown1630

Camo, black, dark blue, digital= guys (did not open his yet)
Purple, pink, light blue, floral, light green all in some sort of paisley/farmer kirchief prints=gals


52 posted on 03/31/2020 5:44:10 PM PDT by madison10
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To: familyop

Yet Fauci and everyone in the room was NOT wearing a mask.

Actions speak more than words...


53 posted on 03/31/2020 5:45:31 PM PDT by Enlightened1
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To: familyop

Yet Fauci and everyone in the room was NOT wearing a mask.

Actions speak more than words...


54 posted on 03/31/2020 5:45:31 PM PDT by Enlightened1
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To: Jamestown1630
Snake-Eyes...corona-free since 1982.


55 posted on 03/31/2020 5:46:25 PM PDT by JediJones (We must deport all liberals until we can figure out what the hell is going on.)
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To: madison10

I think that if things became really hot, you’d take any color you could get.


56 posted on 03/31/2020 5:52:02 PM PDT by Jamestown1630 ("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
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To: familyop
Yep...but, we knew this as of a couple of days ago....


57 posted on 03/31/2020 5:52:03 PM PDT by Jane Long (Praise God, from whom ALL blessings flow.)
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To: familyop

What I want to know is did Fauci alert the CDC or whoever back in Jan 2017 when he stated “The history of the last 32 years that I have been the director of the NIAID will tell the next administration that there is no doubt they will be faced with the challenges their predecessors were faced with,” and said there is “no doubt” Donald J. Trump will be confronted with a surprise infectious disease outbreak during his presidency.
Now there is a shortage of PPE.
Did he alert them and did they just blow it off? Maybe the alarm was never sent or maybe it just wasn’t heeded by CDC and HHS


58 posted on 03/31/2020 5:56:17 PM PDT by alabama_heart
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To: Truth29; AlaskaErik

PDJT recently put some “heat” on the FDA for approval of a mask sterilization machine out of Ohio...approval was announced yesterday during the WH briefing. Masks can be reused 20 times with this procedure/machine:

https://www.battelle.org/inb/battelle-critical-care-decontamination-system-for-covid19

One machine can do up to 80,000 masks per day. Machines already arrived in Ohio, New York, D.C., Florida? and soon Washington state.

https://www.theverge.com/2020/3/29/21198715/fda-approves-battelles-decontaminate-n95-face-masks-coronavirus


59 posted on 03/31/2020 5:56:21 PM PDT by Drago
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To: JediJones

Oh, gosh. (My husband may see this, and there will be yet another franchise I’ll have to sit through and pretend to find fascinating :-)


60 posted on 03/31/2020 5:57:47 PM PDT by Jamestown1630 ("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
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