Can't imagine a worse way to handle the mask situation to simultaneously tell people they don't need masks *and* that health-care workers very much need masks so people shouldn't buy them. People aren't idiots. It's the age of mistrust already. Truth and transparency work better.
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Surgical masks aren't proper respiratory protective devices but they do lessen spread by infected people (some with few symptoms may not know they are) and yes may even protect the wearer some. (Eg: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0195670113000698 …). But we didn't prepare and yes hospitals need them more.
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N95 masks of course, protect the wearer (See stark results from Wuhan: https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.02.18.20021881v1.full.pdf …) and would've been appropriate to have a few at home to take care of milder illnesses to lessen load on hospitals but we didn't prepare and YES YES hospitals desperately need them more.
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zeynep tufekci Retweeted Nancy
Yep, as soon as we start testing US numbers are going to spike. It's pretty clear that there has long been widespread community transmission in the United States. Again, the risk we face is that hospitals will get slammed and we will run out of ICU beds.https://twitter.com/focused4USA/status/1234132657421766658 …
zeynep tufekci added,
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Reminder that US cases will spike soon because we are finally starting to test not because of anything new. We are finally measuring what's been happening: community-transmission. The advice is the same: hand hygiene, don't touch your face, limit going out and mass gatherings.
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zeynep tufekci Retweeted Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus
I logged onto Facebook for the first time in days and groups are full of people asking about travel. It’s unconscionable that there is no public messaging. The World Health Organization recommends people over 60 or with other conditions to avoid crowds.https://twitter.com/drtedros/status/1233695157888987137 …
zeynep tufekci added,
Tedros Adhanom GhebreyesusVerified account @DrTedrosIf you are 60+, or have an underlying condition like cardiovascular disease, a respiratory condition or diabetes, you have a higher risk of developing severe#COVID19. Try to avoid crowded areas, or places where you might interact with people who are sick.#coronavirusShow this thread1 reply 31 retweets 90 likesShow this thread -
As Washington State announces four new coronavirus deaths, they’re also asking people to avoid emergency rooms. That’s where a lot of Americans get primary healthcare so this is going to be a mees. But this is also why people should try to stay home—to preserve hospital capacity.pic.twitter.com/7ShR8oZLFK
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zeynep tufekci Retweeted Avi Zenilman
Yes! Offering to shop for your elderly relatives or neighbors is a great thing to do right now. It may need to be something to organize everywhere. This coronavirus is mild for young and healthy people but strikingly dangerous for the elderly or ill folks.https://twitter.com/avizenilman/status/1234585552294498304 …
zeynep tufekci added,
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Reminder that Chinese authorities knew there was human-to-human transmission in December when there were very few cases. They could have spared the whole world. Instead they punished whistleblower doctors & organized mass outdoor events till late January. https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2020/02/coronavirus-and-blindness-authoritarianism/606922/ …pic.twitter.com/fQV7rZTORN
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Replying to @zeynep @chrislhayes
It’s actually kind of comical to listen to the voices criticizing the Chinese initial response. Of course there were things that should have been done differently. But the US knew about the virus since January and look how slowly we’ve responded.
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We’re screwing this up in our own way. Chinese authorities are the reason we have the pandemic in the first place.
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Replying to @zeynep @chrislhayes
There are many, many places around the world including the US that practice unhealthy wild animal consumption. All of which should be stopped or carefully controlled. China’s dense pop makes controlling it more difficult and also is a reason the gov acts the way they do.
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Replying to @realJRfromCA @chrislhayes
But there’s one place in the world that knew of a novel coronavirus that was spreading from human to human and punished whistleblower doctors, told nobody and kept on organizing mass outdoor events for another month. Yes, we’re taking over screwing this up in our own way now.
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