Time for masks to come off in Singapore

[laksaboy]

Masks might work but only the medical grade N95 ones, those normal surgical ones and the fancy hipster ones worn primarily as a fashion accessory, I doubt much protection will be provided. I don't think they even provide much protection against the haze.

People wear a mask here primarily to not get fined, period. Protection be damned.

 

[Leongsam]

Masks might work but only the medical grade N95 ones, those normal surgical ones and the fancy hipster ones worn primarily as a fashion accessory, I doubt much protection will be provided. I don't think they even provide much protection against the haze.

People wear a mask here primarily to not get fined, period. Protection be damned.

futurism.com

DIY Face Masks Are Basically Useless Against the Coronavirus
Anna Sayburn,

3-4 minutes


Image by cottonbro via Pexels
Knitting enthusiasts are hard at work filling a giant, gaping hole in the nation’s supply of face masks for healthcare workers. And they’re growing in numbers. The New York Times called them “a sewing army” in a recent report.
Despite their good intentions, the simple fact is that home-sown cloth masks are nearly useless in protecting against the virus, as Wirecutter reports, and should only be a very last resort for practitioners in the field.
In the age of coronavirus, personal protective equipment (PPEs) like surgical masks, gloves, and face shields are becoming increasingly hard to come by. And that’s really bad news: without healthy healthcare workers, no treatment. No treatment, more deaths.
“Homemade face masks are not considered [PPEs], and should be an option only when there are absolutely no respirators or face masks left, and used with other protective equipment, such as face shields,” CDC spokesperson Arleen Porcell told Wirecutter in an email.

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“It’s important to note that this strategy is considered a last resort and does not adhere to the typical standards of care in the US, but acknowledges the hard realities on the ground,” Porcell added.
The best case scenario for practitioners remains to be N95-certified respirator masks, as they catch more than 95 percent of particulates. Surgical masks simply create a physical barrier and don’t seal.
Studies have confirmed the fact that homemade cloth masks are pretty terrible at catching viruses. A 2013 Cambridge University study found that tea towels and vacuum cleaner bags were far closer to the effectiveness of actual surgical masks in blocking a certain type of virus.
And then there’s the fact that people might think their cloth face masks can do more than they actually can — in fact, a false sense of security could actually do more harm than good. By touching a contaminated surface and then the mask could actually end up with you getting infected yourself. Besides, homemade masks aren’t properly sterilized.

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So what can you do? Here’s the upshot: consider donating money to your local hospital so they can afford to buy proper PPEs. Leave the respirator masks at the store — they won’t protect you from catching the virus, only protect the people around you from get it from you. With a national shortage of respirators, don’t hoard them for yourself and make sure that healthcare practitioners on the front lines have access to them instead.

 

[Leongsam]

Good time to repost this....

 

[eatshitndie]

futurism.com

DIY Face Masks Are Basically Useless Against the Coronavirus
Anna Sayburn,

3-4 minutes


Image by cottonbro via Pexels
Knitting enthusiasts are hard at work filling a giant, gaping hole in the nation’s supply of face masks for healthcare workers. And they’re growing in numbers. The New York Times called them “a sewing army” in a recent report.
Despite their good intentions, the simple fact is that home-sown cloth masks are nearly useless in protecting against the virus, as Wirecutter reports, and should only be a very last resort for practitioners in the field.
In the age of coronavirus, personal protective equipment (PPEs) like surgical masks, gloves, and face shields are becoming increasingly hard to come by. And that’s really bad news: without healthy healthcare workers, no treatment. No treatment, more deaths.
“Homemade face masks are not considered [PPEs], and should be an option only when there are absolutely no respirators or face masks left, and used with other protective equipment, such as face shields,” CDC spokesperson Arleen Porcell told Wirecutter in an email.

Advertisement

“It’s important to note that this strategy is considered a last resort and does not adhere to the typical standards of care in the US, but acknowledges the hard realities on the ground,” Porcell added.
The best case scenario for practitioners remains to be N95-certified respirator masks, as they catch more than 95 percent of particulates. Surgical masks simply create a physical barrier and don’t seal.
Studies have confirmed the fact that homemade cloth masks are pretty terrible at catching viruses. A 2013 Cambridge University study found that tea towels and vacuum cleaner bags were far closer to the effectiveness of actual surgical masks in blocking a certain type of virus.
And then there’s the fact that people might think their cloth face masks can do more than they actually can — in fact, a false sense of security could actually do more harm than good. By touching a contaminated surface and then the mask could actually end up with you getting infected yourself. Besides, homemade masks aren’t properly sterilized.

Advertisement

So what can you do? Here’s the upshot: consider donating money to your local hospital so they can afford to buy proper PPEs. Leave the respirator masks at the store — they won’t protect you from catching the virus, only protect the people around you from get it from you. With a national shortage of respirators, don’t hoard them for yourself and make sure that healthcare practitioners on the front lines have access to them instead.

agree. can piss off judge too and get fined or jailed like this lady did.

 

[tobelightlight]

Israel did it because they vaccinated over 50% of their population. Singapore not there yet, you can ask your minister why

Israel did it so sg has to follow? is that a divine decree that sg has to follow Israel exactly or is it just some crap you come up with? just choose a country that fit your agenda so pple has to follow the particular example stated by you?

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Masks came off in Israel, coming off in America. Going by the percentage of the population that is vaccinated, Singapore should also be following Israel and the US. Instead, Singapore is heading for a second lockdown.

Why many Covid experts think Americans can ditch their masks soon

May 13, 2021


WASHINGTON (AFP) - Covid cases are declining quickly while vaccinations continue to rise slowly but surely in the United States, the former epicentre of the pandemic.
Many experts believe the time will soon be right for the federal government to ease its recommendations on indoor masking across the board, and say doing so could help encourage more vaccine holdouts about the clear benefits of getting their shots.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention already says masks aren't needed outdoors for vaccinated people unless it's crowded, nor indoors when inoculated individuals gather in small groups with others who are immunised.
President Joe Biden, who has set a target of vaccinating 70 per cent of adults with at least one dose by July 4, told a meeting of state governors on Tuesday that further loosening measures are to "come soon."
Right now, the vaccination figure is around 59 per cent of adults with at least one dose, while the country is reporting around 38,000 daily new cases - a per capita rate of 11 new cases per 100,000 people, well below global hotspots and falling fast.
Consensus is growing among experts that given the encouraging data, the United States is approaching the right time to lift indoor mask restrictions in most public settings.

"For somebody who's already been fully vaccinated, they can wear the mask out of solidarity or in a symbolic sense, but their wearing a mask indoors is not benefiting anyone else," explained Vinay Prasad, an epidemiologist and biostatistician at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF).
"There's an infinitesimally low probability of even having an infection that can be detected on a PCR test, let alone being able to spread it to someone," he added.
Public health authorities were cautious about vaccines' ability to stop transmission back when they were first rolled out in December, because the clinical trials they went through were only designed to test their efficacy against symptomatic disease.
But accumulating data from the real world has shown that - as many immunologists had expected - the vaccines are extremely effective at preventing asymptomatic infection, said Monica Gandhi, an infectious disease physician and professor also at UCSF.

A study among health workers from Britain showed an 86 per cent reduction in asymptomatic infection after two doses of the Pfizer shot while a huge Israel study of the general population showed 94 per cent efficacy.
The news gets even better: Because the outbreak itself is declining, the actual rate of so-called "breakthrough infections" is very, very low.
According to data reported to the CDC as of April 26, some 9,000 people out of 95 million people became infected despite being fully vaccinated - 0.009 per cent.
The rate of hospitalisations and deaths was 0.0009 and 0.0001 per cent, respectively.
And even when a vaccinated person becomes infected, new Israeli research has shown the viral loads inside the individual's nose are very low, likely non-transmissible.
"Masking is a tool, and vaccines are the solution," said Ms Gandhi, who has written seven papers on the importance of masking to stem the pandemic, and was one of the earliest proponents of universal masking in the United States.
There is another good reason to ease restrictions, and that is to motivate people who are hesitant to roll up their sleeves, said Angela Rasmussen, of the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization in Canada.
This is becoming more important as the rate of vaccination in the United States has fallen from its early April peak and supply is outstripping demand in many regions.
But she added it will be important to define clear metrics, "because one of the biggest problems with communication during the pandemic has been the perception that public health agencies are moving the goalposts." What might those look like? Gandhi said this could be tied to regional case rates, for example when there are fewer than two new cases per 100,000 people.
Another is a high threshold of people vaccinated, for example 70 per cent, and everyone's had the chance to get a shot.
She and other experts foresee that masking will continue to be a personal choice, and it may still be wise for elderly people who have comorbidities.
Amesh Adalja, who works on pandemic policy at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, said that even after the pandemic, mask wearing might become seasonal.
"The United States is going to be a more mask-wearing society, especially when it comes to flu season, when it comes to public transit and enclosed areas," he said.

 

[laksaboy]

Masks came off in Israel, coming off in America. Going by the percentage of the population that is vaccinated, Singapore should also be following Israel and the US. Instead, Singapore is heading for a second lockdown.

Those 'free' masks given out by Temasek Foundation... they are a very profitable business. Doubtful they'll stop the gravy train in the near future.

 

[glockman]

Good time to repost this....

This is why lockdowns, restriction of human movement, and social distancing are more effective. Masks provide some protection, at least the viral load is lessened somewhat.

 

[syed putra]

Singapore 60% will be year end at this rate

I thought we are covid vaccine hub

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Singapore is lagging behind, no thanks to the poor management of incoming travellers.

South Koreans no longer need masks outdoors if vaccinated against Covid-19

The move is a bid to encourage older residents to get vaccinated as South Korea aims to immunise at least 70 per cent of its 52 million people by September.PHOTO: REUTERS

MAY 26, 2021


SEOUL (REUTERS) - South Korea on Wednesday (May 26) said masks will no longer be required outdoors from July for those vaccinated with at least one Covid-19 shot.
The move is a bid to encourage older residents to get vaccinated as South Korea aims to immunise at least 70 per cent of its 52 million people by September, from just 7.7 per cent now.
People given at least one dose also will be allowed to gather in larger numbers starting June, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum told a coronavirus response meeting on Wednesday.
He said all quarantine measures would be adjusted once more than 70 per cent of residents had received their first dose.
Over 60 per cent of people aged between 60 and 74 had signed up for vaccination, Health Minister Kwon Deok-cheol said.
South Korea will begin vaccinating the general public aged between 65 and 74 from Thursday in over 12,000 clinics.


South Korea reported 707 new confirmed cases of the coronavirus on Tuesday, bringing the total tally to 137,682 infections, with 1,940 deaths.

 

[eatshitndie]

majority of sinkies (69%) are ugly. better for sinkies to leave their masks on.

 

[Leongsam]

majority of sinkies (69%) are ugly. better for sinkies to leave their masks on.

I hope the cabinet keeps their masks on forever so we're spared the torture of seeing their ugly mugs on a regular basis.

 

[capamerica]

I hope the cabinet keeps their masks on forever so we're spared the torture of seeing their ugly mugs on a regular basis.

if it shuts stupid people like you up, an added bonus

 

[eatshitndie]

LOL! So loser "masks dont work" LOL!

"its just a flu"

So funny

your panties in a twist need to cum off too.

 

[chickenpieforeveryone]

just say u brisk walking lor

 

[glockman]

Singapore is lagging behind, no thanks to the poor management of incoming travellers.

South Koreans no longer need masks outdoors if vaccinated against Covid-19

The move is a bid to encourage older residents to get vaccinated as South Korea aims to immunise at least 70 per cent of its 52 million people by September.PHOTO: REUTERS

MAY 26, 2021


SEOUL (REUTERS) - South Korea on Wednesday (May 26) said masks will no longer be required outdoors from July for those vaccinated with at least one Covid-19 shot.
The move is a bid to encourage older residents to get vaccinated as South Korea aims to immunise at least 70 per cent of its 52 million people by September, from just 7.7 per cent now.
People given at least one dose also will be allowed to gather in larger numbers starting June, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum told a coronavirus response meeting on Wednesday.
He said all quarantine measures would be adjusted once more than 70 per cent of residents had received their first dose.
Over 60 per cent of people aged between 60 and 74 had signed up for vaccination, Health Minister Kwon Deok-cheol said.
South Korea will begin vaccinating the general public aged between 65 and 74 from Thursday in over 12,000 clinics.


South Korea reported 707 new confirmed cases of the coronavirus on Tuesday, bringing the total tally to 137,682 infections, with 1,940 deaths.

If this is the case in sinkieland, I would get my jabs.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Masks coming off in Italy, one of the countries in Europe worst hit by covid-19.
Meanwhile in Singapore....

Coronavirus: Mask-free and 'low risk', Italy welcomes milestone​

People enjoy a sunny day in downtown Milan, Italy on June 27, 2021.

June 28, 2021

ROME (AFP) - All of Italy became a mask-free, "low-risk" zone for coronavirus Monday (June 28), marking a dramatic milestone for the first European country to be hit by the global pandemic in February 2020.
In a decree that took effect Monday, the health ministry for the first time classified each of Italy's 20 regions as "white", signifying low risk, under the country's colour-coded classification system that evaluates Covid-19 risk.
That means face masks will no longer be compulsory in outdoor areas - welcome news across the country where an ongoing heatwave is expected to push temperatures past 40 deg C in some southern areas this week.
Once a symbol of the coronavirus crisis in the West - where images of army trucks transporting coffins from the overflowing morgue in the northern city of Bergamo were seen around the world - Italy has seen Covid-19 infections and deaths plummet in recent weeks.
A third of Italy's population over the age of 12 has been vaccinated as of Sunday, or 17,572,505 people, according to the government.
Long prohibited from entering the country, tourists from the European Union, Britain, the United States, Canada and Japan are now back after the government removed a quarantine requirement for vaccinated visitors, or those who test negative.


Despite the progress, Health Minister Roberto Speranza urged Italians to be vigilant.
"It's an encouraging result, but caution and prudence is still needed, especially because of the new variants," Mr Speranza wrote, after signing the ordinance Saturday. "The battle is not yet won."
After a long period beginning in November of full or partial regional lockdowns to combat a second wave of coronavirus infections, restrictions were relaxed all over Italy late last month.
The entire country was made a "yellow zone", which brought more freedoms but maintained an overnight curfew that shortened restaurant hours.
As the government gradually eliminated the restrictions over the course of June, the lone holdout, until Monday, was the Aosta Valley, the small alpine region in the north-west.
In Italy, more 127,000 people have died of Covid-19-related complications, while more than four million people have been infected.

 

[laksaboy]

Meanwhile in Vietnam. (June 2021)

 

[zhihau]

for a moment I thought Israel was masking up again?

 

[mahjongking]

haha, n

Meanwhile in Vietnam. (June 2021)

haha, nobody gives a fuck about the stupid masks