WEBVTT - How to Wear a Mask 0:00:04.920 --> 0:00:11.119 Welcome to Prognosis. I'm Laura Carlson. It's day since coronavirus 0:00:11.240 --> 0:00:15.480 was declared a global pandemic. Our main story today. The 0:00:15.640 --> 0:00:19.000 question of whether healthy people should wear masks to protect 0:00:19.000 --> 0:00:23.799 from COVID nineteen has been surprisingly hard to answer, Even 0:00:23.840 --> 0:00:28.560 as more places adopt widespread maskius, health agencies can't agree 0:00:28.600 --> 0:00:32.800 on their official recommendations. The shifting rules around covering our 0:00:32.840 --> 0:00:36.159 faces have made it harder to trust authorities about what 0:00:36.479 --> 0:00:41.040 will control the spread of the virus. But first, here's 0:00:41.080 --> 0:00:52.720 what happened today. New York State reported its largest increase 0:00:52.760 --> 0:00:58.160 in coronavirus deaths on Tuesday. Even so, there are signs 0:00:58.200 --> 0:01:02.320 that infection rates in New York are leveling off. The 0:01:02.400 --> 0:01:06.800 number of new cases reported has steadily dropped since Friday's peak. 0:01:07.800 --> 0:01:11.360 The United Kingdom also reported a record number of deaths 0:01:11.560 --> 0:01:15.280 in a single day, but in China, for the first 0:01:15.319 --> 0:01:19.119 time since the pandemic emerged in December, the country said 0:01:19.240 --> 0:01:23.759 it had no new deaths. The Chinese government formally ended 0:01:23.760 --> 0:01:27.119 the lockdown in Wuhan, the city where the outbreak first emerged, 0:01:27.880 --> 0:01:31.120 after seventy six days. The strict measures imposed to combat 0:01:31.160 --> 0:01:35.720 the virus have been lifted. How Speaker Nancy Pelosi says 0:01:35.880 --> 0:01:38.640 Congress's next stimulus bill to prop up the U S 0:01:38.680 --> 0:01:42.920 economy will be at least another one trillion dollars. On 0:01:42.959 --> 0:01:45.720 a private conference call with Democrats, the Speaker said the 0:01:45.720 --> 0:01:50.720 package would focus on replenishing funds for programs. Those funds 0:01:50.800 --> 0:01:54.520 had been established in Congress's two point to trillion dollar 0:01:54.680 --> 0:01:57.680 virus Relief Bill, which was signed into law last month. 0:01:58.520 --> 0:02:00.800 Pelosi said there should be a dish a direct payments 0:02:00.800 --> 0:02:05.920 to individuals, extended unemployment insurance, more resources for food stamps, 0:02:05.960 --> 0:02:09.519 and more funds for the Payroll Protection Plan that provides 0:02:09.639 --> 0:02:20.919 loans to small businesses. Now for today's main story, US 0:02:20.960 --> 0:02:24.760 health officials and the World Health Organization are sending conflicting 0:02:24.880 --> 0:02:28.840 signals on the value of wearing masks in public. At 0:02:28.880 --> 0:02:31.519 the start of the coronavirus outbreak, the world's leading health 0:02:31.520 --> 0:02:34.040 authorities told the public that there was no need for 0:02:34.160 --> 0:02:37.560 masks unless you were ill or looking after someone who was. 0:02:39.040 --> 0:02:42.639 But after more studies suggested people without symptoms could be 0:02:42.680 --> 0:02:46.200 spreading the virus, the US Centers for Disease Control and 0:02:46.200 --> 0:02:51.160 Prevention recently changed their guidelines suggesting people cover their faces 0:02:51.360 --> 0:02:56.040 to help slow transmission. The World Health Organization, though held 0:02:56.080 --> 0:03:00.440 back from making the same recommendation. The confused and over 0:03:00.520 --> 0:03:03.840 face masks is just one more example of how our 0:03:03.960 --> 0:03:07.280 understanding of the virus and how to fight against it 0:03:07.360 --> 0:03:12.160 is constantly changing. As London based Bloomberg News reporter James 0:03:12.160 --> 0:03:15.800 Payton explains, this changing messaging makes it hard for the 0:03:15.800 --> 0:03:20.360 public to know what information to take seriously. It also 0:03:20.400 --> 0:03:24.040 presents challenges in persuading people to change their behavior to 0:03:24.120 --> 0:03:30.120 help prevent future pandemics. The streets of London or New 0:03:30.200 --> 0:03:32.560 York today look much different than they did even a 0:03:32.600 --> 0:03:36.200 week ago. Lots of people have their faces covered somewhere 0:03:36.240 --> 0:03:40.400 commercial surgical mass, others improvised with bandanas or so their own. 0:03:40.920 --> 0:03:43.560 A few even sport that coveted, and nine mass that 0:03:43.600 --> 0:03:47.200 are in such short supply among healthcare providers. What's clear 0:03:47.240 --> 0:03:50.120 is that something has changed in these cities. Until recently, 0:03:50.200 --> 0:03:54.480 few people were mass in public. What's not clear is 0:03:54.480 --> 0:03:57.800 how much they help. Outside of hospitals and clinics. The 0:03:57.960 --> 0:04:00.080 w h O and CDC are now at odds so 0:04:00.120 --> 0:04:03.520 over whether everyone should wear mass. Dr Anthony Fauci is 0:04:03.520 --> 0:04:07.240 America's top medical expert on the coronavirus. He recently appeared 0:04:07.240 --> 0:04:10.000 on Fox News to say even simple coverings could make 0:04:10.000 --> 0:04:13.080 a difference, especially for those situations when you're at the 0:04:13.120 --> 0:04:16.279 grocery store or pharmacy, for instance, and it's difficult to 0:04:16.320 --> 0:04:19.360 stay six ft away from others. Because of some recent 0:04:19.400 --> 0:04:24.479 information that the virus can actually be spread even when 0:04:24.520 --> 0:04:29.279 people just speak, as opposed to coughing and sneezing, the 0:04:29.360 --> 0:04:32.200 better part of valor is that when you're out and 0:04:32.320 --> 0:04:35.880 you can't maintain that six foot distance, to wear some 0:04:35.960 --> 0:04:44.799 sort of facial covering. Health officials say basic mass won't 0:04:44.800 --> 0:04:47.200 protect you if you're healthy, but they worry that if 0:04:47.200 --> 0:04:49.600 you are infected and don't show any signs of sickness, 0:04:49.720 --> 0:04:53.839 you could unwittingly spread the disease. A number of countries 0:04:53.839 --> 0:04:56.280 and cities around the world have already embraced the idea 0:04:56.320 --> 0:04:59.160 of wearing masks in public check citizens have in ordered 0:04:59.160 --> 0:05:02.000 to wear masks outside their homes, and officials from New 0:05:02.080 --> 0:05:06.040 York to Los Angeles have instructed residents to cover up. Meanwhile, 0:05:06.160 --> 0:05:08.640 the WHO is still urging people to wear mass if 0:05:08.640 --> 0:05:11.280 they show symptoms or they're taking care of those who 0:05:11.279 --> 0:05:15.640 are ill. The shifting recommendations are coming as scientists race 0:05:15.760 --> 0:05:18.960 to understand the virus and how it spreads. A study 0:05:19.000 --> 0:05:21.680 published last week and the journal Nature showed that flat 0:05:21.720 --> 0:05:25.320 surgical face masks reduced the droplets released from the nose 0:05:25.360 --> 0:05:28.320 and mouth into the air, and there are some indications 0:05:28.440 --> 0:05:31.680 the widespread wearing of mass could have helped lower transmission 0:05:31.680 --> 0:05:36.479 and outbreaks of other respiratory illnesses such as stars and influenza. 0:05:36.640 --> 0:05:40.160 While a scientific consensus has yet to emerge, the research 0:05:40.240 --> 0:05:43.960 and supportive face mass is growing. But while health officials 0:05:43.960 --> 0:05:46.640 are pushing this message that everyone should wear masks, it 0:05:46.760 --> 0:05:50.520 also could create new problems. Scott Gottlieb is a former 0:05:50.560 --> 0:05:54.120 Food and Drug Administration commissioner. Key points to one debate 0:05:54.160 --> 0:05:56.920 around wearing a mask. Even if it can cut down 0:05:56.920 --> 0:05:59.960 on transmission, it's likely a lot of people will use 0:06:00.080 --> 0:06:04.880 it incorrectly and still potentially spread the virus. They'll reuse 0:06:04.920 --> 0:06:06.760 the mask. If they have a mask on, they're going 0:06:06.800 --> 0:06:08.560 to be more apt to touch their face, and so 0:06:08.600 --> 0:06:11.840 that's why health professionals say, well, masks in the general 0:06:11.880 --> 0:06:14.720 population don't really reduce the risk because most people aren't 0:06:14.720 --> 0:06:16.640 gonna wear it right. They're gonna wear one mask for 0:06:16.680 --> 0:06:18.320 a whole week. They're not going to change it. It's 0:06:18.320 --> 0:06:20.640 gonna get more, it's gonna get contaminated. When they have 0:06:20.680 --> 0:06:22.560 the mask on, they're gonna be constantly adjusting it, and 0:06:22.600 --> 0:06:25.400 that's going to increase the risk that they transmit infection 0:06:25.480 --> 0:06:28.080 because a lot of the transmission is through touching of 0:06:28.080 --> 0:06:31.120 contaminated surfaces and then touching your face. But the value 0:06:31.120 --> 0:06:34.239 of the mask, the real substantial value is in cutting 0:06:34.360 --> 0:06:36.640 the risk of transmission. So when you have a virus 0:06:36.680 --> 0:06:39.919 like this where a lot of the transmission is asymptomatic, people, 0:06:40.320 --> 0:06:42.640 if you mandate that they wear masks when they go out, 0:06:42.720 --> 0:06:45.520 it's gonna cut their risk of giving the infection to you. 0:06:49.240 --> 0:06:51.840 Another risk is that promoting mass will give the public 0:06:51.880 --> 0:06:54.880 a false sense of protection that would encourage them to 0:06:54.960 --> 0:06:59.360 go out more and abandon physical distancing. Health authorities also 0:06:59.440 --> 0:07:02.120 discourage wearing mass out of fear that people would hoard 0:07:02.200 --> 0:07:05.720 them that could worsen shortages for doctors, nurses, and other 0:07:05.800 --> 0:07:09.840 healthcare workers. Even if authorities aren't recommending the highly protective 0:07:09.880 --> 0:07:13.120 surgical grade products that are scarce and used in hospitals, 0:07:13.840 --> 0:07:16.920 wearing masks to limit disease transmission is a common practice 0:07:16.960 --> 0:07:20.040 in many Asian countries. It took off during the Stars 0:07:20.040 --> 0:07:23.720 epidemic of two thousand three, and health authorities there say 0:07:23.720 --> 0:07:27.480 wearing masks can make a real difference. Widespread mask use 0:07:27.560 --> 0:07:30.000 was cited as one of the reasons Hong Kong limited 0:07:30.000 --> 0:07:33.920 the number of coronavirus cases and deaths. Now the CDC 0:07:34.280 --> 0:07:38.360 is following. Asia's lead officials say mass do help limit 0:07:38.400 --> 0:07:41.600 that transmission, and to solve the issue of shortages, have 0:07:41.720 --> 0:07:44.960 emphasized that the type of mass ordinary people where need 0:07:45.040 --> 0:07:48.960 not be hospital grade. New York City mayor build A Blasio, 0:07:49.080 --> 0:07:51.440 ordered the city's residents to cover their face with just 0:07:51.600 --> 0:07:56.120 about anything last week. Let's be clear, this is a 0:07:56.200 --> 0:07:59.960 face covering. Again. We'll talk about the details in the moment. 0:08:00.120 --> 0:08:02.800 But it could be a scarf. Uh, It could be 0:08:02.840 --> 0:08:05.760 something you create yourself at home. It could be a bandana. 0:08:05.880 --> 0:08:11.200 It does not not need to be professional surgical mask. 0:08:11.240 --> 0:08:14.400 In fact, we don't want you to use the kinds 0:08:14.440 --> 0:08:18.440 of masks that our first responders need. Scott Gottlieb, the 0:08:18.480 --> 0:08:21.520 former FDA commissioner, put together a roadmap for escaping the 0:08:21.560 --> 0:08:25.320 crisis with several other experts, published by the American Enterprise Institute, 0:08:25.400 --> 0:08:30.320 the conservative think tank. They suggest everyone, including those without symptoms, 0:08:30.320 --> 0:08:33.240 should cover up. Gotlieb says, we just need to get 0:08:33.240 --> 0:08:36.560 over our discomfort with the idea. Introducing the mask as 0:08:36.600 --> 0:08:39.160 you lift those shelter and place orders might be a 0:08:39.240 --> 0:08:42.319 good way to have a slow transition towards, you know, 0:08:42.440 --> 0:08:45.199 people going out again, and we might become a culture 0:08:45.240 --> 0:08:49.280 going forward where the wearing of masks in public, um, 0:08:49.320 --> 0:08:51.600 you know, is more common. I think we might have 0:08:51.679 --> 0:08:54.480 made a mistake by shaming the use of masks at 0:08:54.520 --> 0:08:56.680 the outset as heavily as we did. A lot of 0:08:56.679 --> 0:08:59.480 people have masks at home right now. They bought masks, 0:08:59.520 --> 0:09:01.120 they have they've had them for a long time, and 0:09:01.120 --> 0:09:03.440 they're reluctant to wear them because they, you know, they 0:09:03.440 --> 0:09:06.040 were ashamed into not wearing them. So they have something 0:09:06.040 --> 0:09:09.000 that could potentially be affording them a certain degree of 0:09:09.000 --> 0:09:10.920 protection and not even using it. And so I think 0:09:10.920 --> 0:09:14.120 we need to rethink how we how we think about masks, 0:09:14.160 --> 0:09:16.880 how we talk about masks with consumers, how we educate 0:09:16.920 --> 0:09:20.280 consumers to use masks appropriately, because on the margin, they're 0:09:20.280 --> 0:09:24.120 probably incrementally helpful when used appropriately in the right setting. 0:09:24.880 --> 0:09:27.800 If wearing masks in public places where it's difficult to 0:09:27.800 --> 0:09:30.640 maintain a distance. Is a prudent way to help slow 0:09:30.720 --> 0:09:34.400 the spread of the coronavirus. It begs the question should 0:09:34.400 --> 0:09:37.200 we have been wearing them all along? The director of 0:09:37.200 --> 0:09:40.040 the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, George Gau, 0:09:40.480 --> 0:09:43.280 told the journal Science last month he believes America and 0:09:43.320 --> 0:09:46.960 Europe were making a big mistake by not telling the 0:09:46.960 --> 0:09:50.880 public to wear masks during the widening epidemic. That suggests 0:09:50.960 --> 0:09:53.760 we could look back on this as a missed opportunity. 0:09:54.200 --> 0:09:57.640 For now, there's likely to be more confusion over mass wearing. 0:09:58.200 --> 0:10:00.679 Maybe the best advice is just where something over your 0:10:00.679 --> 0:10:03.520 face when you go out. As New York Governor Andrew 0:10:03.559 --> 0:10:06.600 Cuomo said last week, it couldn't hurt. Assuming you keep 0:10:06.640 --> 0:10:10.400 your guard up, You'll probably have plenty of company. What 0:10:10.480 --> 0:10:13.080 would have drawn stairs in the US or Europe just 0:10:13.120 --> 0:10:35.720 a few weeks ago is increasingly normal. And that was 0:10:35.840 --> 0:10:39.599 James Payton in London. And that's it for the Prognosis 0:10:39.679 --> 0:10:42.840 Daily edition. For more on the pandemic from our bureaus 0:10:42.880 --> 0:10:47.800 around the world, visit Bloomberg dot com slash coronavirus, and 0:10:47.920 --> 0:10:50.160 if you like the podcast, please take a moment to 0:10:50.240 --> 0:10:52.839 rate us and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts 0:10:53.040 --> 0:10:56.640 or Spotify. It helps more listeners find our global reporting. 0:10:57.320 --> 0:11:00.679 The Prognosis Daily edition is hosted by Me Laura Carlson. 0:11:01.360 --> 0:11:04.920 The show is produced by Me Tophor Forehaz, Jordan Gaspoure, 0:11:05.360 --> 0:11:11.240 and Magnus Hendrickson. Additional reporting by James Peyton. Original music 0:11:11.480 --> 0:11:16.120 by Leo Sidrian. Our editors are Francesco Levi and Rick Shine. 0:11:16.760 --> 0:11:21.280 Francesco Levi is Bloomberg's head of podcasts. Thanks for listening.