Face coverings need to be mandatory if we want to lower the infection rate

[Redolent]

80-90% of people need to be wearing them for them to have a significant impact in lowering transmission of coronavirus. Once you’re down to 30-40% of people wearing them, there’s almost no benefit - according to modellers at UC Berkeley.

Study here: www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/05/masks-covid-19-infections-would-plummet-new-study-says

WHY is it more risky to meet someone in my garden than it is to meet them in the park?

It isn't. But people are more likely to "just nip and use the loo" "come in quickly and see my new painted kitchen" etc etc

LangClegsInSpace so you genuinely can't see a point in having people interact where they must for work etc and discouraging it where they don't have to?

Did anyone explain about why we want to control the speed of the spread?

Exactly what the last 2 posters said. We have to do what we have to do. And that means limiting social contact (meeting one person outside if necessary, not having 2 people over to sit in the garden), and going to work. We need to get work moving before we can resume our social lives. Of course we'd all rather be in the company of friends/family than colleagues, but that's not how it is right now.

The point about seeing 1 person is that you can only pass the virus on to 1 other person. If you see 2, then you double your transmission.

Act as if you have the virus - do what has to be done (going to work, supermarket shopping), and limit your contact with others outside of that. Following this will mean we bring R down more successfully and can then start doing the things we WANT to do.

The rule about seeing 1 other person doesn't mean you HAVE to go out and meet people, but provides some much needed respite for those who have been on their own for 7-8 weeks, or those who need contact outside their home for other reasons. I'm desperate to see my friends (my parents are shielding, so no hope of seeing them for ages), but I understand that actually we don't NEED to see each other just yet.

The same applies to wearing masks - we need to think about why they are being worn, and the wider implications of doing so. And many, many people don't.

Act as if you have the virus

That might have been a pretty good slogan early on but not now - people were very fearful in my area waiting for the onslaught of CV that didn't come.

It's clear that people adhered to the rules well here as it was extremely quiet for the first two chunks of lockdown and now has become very busy with groups of people out and about and people having get-togethers in their gardens (including my family)

You can look at that as a failure to 'do as you're told' but I would say people have done their bit. The virus has had a minimal impact in my area, meanwhile the lockdown has had hugely negative social and economic impact that will probably last for years.

LangClegsInSpace Completely agree with your posts

Same,

I’ve ordered some cloth masks for myself but ive just had a peek at the other mask thread on here and there are just as many mean comments Aimed at people not wearing masks as the other way (more I’d say)

Its like a plot from Years and Years!

You are so right

I thought the virus was spread by droplets and these are expelled more violently and over a bigger area if someone coughs and sneezes but not by just breathing?

So if I don't cough or sneeze then wearing a mask is pointless.

I'm in the vulnerable group and practicing very stringent social distancing i.e. since 15 March I have only left the house once a week for a walk.

I am anxious about compulsory mask wearing as not everyone can wear one, for example some people with asthma and COPD etc. struggle to breathe when wearing a mask. Then you have people with PTSD, sensory issues etc. who may also struggle.

I'm sure exemptions would be made if masks become compulsory, but I worry that anyone not wearing one in public may be at risk of challenge by others (by the sort of person who challenges anyone with a blue badge who doesn't look like their stereotype of disabled), refused entry to shops etc.

If i struggled to wear a mask because of my asthma I wouldn't feel comfortable going for a walk anymore. I would feel even less comfortable going to the supermarket, pharmacy or doctors surgery.

If masks become compulsory then I hope the public information campaign highlights that not everyone can wear one.

Can I ask some questions without being shouted down, told I'm stupid etc.?

Those who are wearing reusable masks, I understand they need to be washed after each use but are you literally washing the mask each time or waiting and washing a few at a time? I do one 40 wash for clothing and one 60 for bedding/towels so I presume they would go in the 60? It seems wasteful to do a wash just for a couple of masks.

Presumably I would only need them for shopping/hairdressers when they reopen as I don't use public transport and wouldn't wear one for outdoor exercise so I was thinking 3 would be enough as they are quite expensive, especially the ones with filters.

I'm sure exemptions would be made if masks become compulsory, but I worry that anyone not wearing one in public may be at risk of challenge by others (by the sort of person who challenges anyone with a blue badge who doesn't look like their stereotype of disabled), refused entry to shops etc.

Yes, even though it doesn't apply to me that would worry me - yet another thing for the Daily Mail to shame people for

Yes FeedMeSantiago, that’s why I just wouldn’t go out if they were compulsory.

I've ordered some reusable masks with disposable filters, but they aren't due to arrive for another month and frankly `I have my doubts about whether they ever will.

In the meantime, I've noticed that the Timpsons concession in our supermarket has started making washable masks from soft cotton cloth, and you can have one for a £2 donation to charity. Obviously they aren't surgical grade, but they fit well, are comfortable and should stop you from spreading at least some nasties. I got a few at the weekend, including some for the elderly couple we shop for. Just in case we find we need to wear a face covering or we can't go out.

A number of other European countries are at the very least making them compulsory on public transport. Perhaps we should do that. They have this illness a few weeks before us so we can see how this has worked. In a large supermarket, it may be easier to keep your distance and I guess you could argue that people could just order their supermarket shopping online (although it seemed virtually impossible to get a slot last time), but it may be more difficult on a tube train and it is called 'public transport' after all...

I don’t use public transport anyway so thankfully that isn’t an issue for me. And we’ve had no problems getting online shops here. So I only go out for exercise and we were semi rural we’ve never had to be within 5m of anyone else.

@PinkSparklyPussyCat - not stupid in the slightest. In fact, far more sensible than most for actually thinking of the wider implications.

I think I'd just bung them in the wash when it went on, so that would mean I'd need several if I was leaving the house every day and going on public transport. I also think (but don't quote me on this) that they'd be OK washed at 40. After all, we wash our hands at a much lower temp than this...

Your post really highlights the issue though. Lots of people have bought/made/been given 'a mask'. So they wear it out, on the bus or wherever, and then do what...? Put it in a plastic bag, take it home, put it in the wash (all without touching it, remember), or put it in their bag and put it back on for the journey home (or the next trip out)? If you don't do the first of these options, then you're doing more harm than good by wearing it in the first place.

And - by the way - I'm not anti mask at all. I can totally see how they COULD prevent some transmission, but ONLY WHEN THEY'RE PROPERLY USED. (Not just properly worn, but properly put on, taken off, handled, transported and washed - there's more to it than just 'wearing a mask').