Thread by @laurelchor

The Great Mask "Debate" is hitting France. Tonight, @TF1 aired a report on whether masks should be recommended for everyone (current govt recommendations say they're for the sick only; see screenshot below), pointing out that Austria is now requiring them in some public places.

They included a quote from a Chinese expert who said that he thought Europe and North America's big mistake was not recommending everyone to wear masks, and an interview with a French doctor who said that people should wear them not to protect themselves, but others.

The official guidelines (above): masks are not recommended without symptoms. Masks shouldn't be used by the general public because they can't be worn all the time and in particular, there's no reason to wear them outside of prolonged & close contact with a sick person.

"Against the coronavirus, it's protective acts [e.g. washing hands, not shaking hands, no cheek-kissing, sneezing in elbows... etc] and social distancing measures, particularly staying more than 1m away from others, that are effective." ... implying that masks are not effective.

Another segment about masks is airing right now, titled "Did France make a mistake?" But they make the point that France doesn't make enough, estimating the need for 7.5 million masks/week for medical workers alone + 10 million/week for police, firefighters, prison workers etc.

French Prime Minister @EPhilippePM acknowledges live on @TF1 that people in countries like China or S. Korea have the habit of wearing masks, and that he's aware of the controversy surrounding the government recommendation to not wear masks. #COVID19

He says that the French government is following expert recommendations, i.e. the guidelines I posted a few tweets above.

The French Prime Minister just coughed while answering questions from the public about #COVID19fr on live TV. I burst out laughing. Sometimes we need dark humor.