400 Million Free N95 Masks

[+ Lucky]

The US says it will distribute 400 million N95 masks for free through pharmacies.

Are these the same pharmacies that have been closing   for lack of staff?

Why not distribute them with the free COVID tests?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

W

[Luv2play]

I thought N95 masks had to be properly fitted to work effectively. Surgical masks on the other hand don't. Since we still don't have enough of the former in Canada even for front line workers, most of us have to make do with the latter. But they are freely available and most people wear either them or cloth masks. The cloth ones apparently aren't as effective so I stick with the blue surgical masks.

[+ tassojunior]

3 minutes ago, Luv2play said:

I thought N95 masks had to be properly fitted to work effectively. Surgical masks on the other hand don't. Since we still don't have enough of the former in Canada even for front line workers, most of us have to make do with the latter. But they are freely available and most people wear either them or cloth masks. The cloth ones apparently aren't as effective so I stick with the blue surgical masks.

N95's are very hard to breath in so I won't use them for long times and not in summer. I compromise by wearing 2 blue surgical masks. Solves the loose-fit problem but I can still breathe a little.  

[Todd Jenkins]

theater.

[+ JEC]

IMHO the whole "free tests" and "free masks" is an attempt to mop up (or, distract from) the testing mess.   Sadly, I think it's only contributing to the lack of tests and testing given limited supply.  🙄

[Kcdave]

Sadly I went to a grocery store in Kansas City to get the free government mask. They did not fit properly. It had an awkward reversed rubber straps. Went behind your head,not behind your ears.

I have a feeling they were stuck with 400 million masks and did not know what to do with them. I don’t believe they were well manufactured 

[+ FrankR]

2 hours ago, Kcdave said:

Sadly I went to a grocery store in Kansas City to get the free government mask. They did not fit properly. It had an awkward reversed rubber straps. Went behind your head,not behind your ears.

I have a feeling they were stuck with 400 million masks and did not know what to do with them. I don’t believe they were well manufactured 

All N95 masks I have seen and owned had straps going around the head.  It was hard for me to find one that fit well - I finally did, at a hardware store; found a model that is used by construction workers.  Not particularly comfortable, but at least it fit.  Because of the discomfort, I switched to KN95 as my daily go to since they have straps going behind the ears.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08JQN25FR/ref=ox_sc_saved_image_9?smid=A3M1QDT641ZGEO&th=1

 

[Todd Jenkins]

If it makes you feel safe, great. 

Just know, masks don't really work. 

[Guest]

On 2/7/2022 at 5:41 PM, FrankR said:

All N95 masks I have seen and owned had straps going around the head.  It was hard for me to find one that fit well - I finally did, at a hardware store; found a model that is used by construction workers.  Not particularly comfortable, but at least it fit.  Because of the discomfort, I switched to KN95 as my daily go to since they have straps going behind the ears.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08JQN25FR/ref=ox_sc_saved_image_9?smid=A3M1QDT641ZGEO&th=1

 

N95 masks need to be fitted professionally (a hood is put on, bitter scents puffed into the hood, various sizes tried until no scent detected) in order for them to be perform as expected. The straps of the professional masks should go around the head, not around the ears. Mostly needed if working with people who have tuberculosis (probably for anthrax, though that's extremely rare). No point in torturing yourself with unfitted N95's. Essentially 100% of the virus in most places (certainly in the US) at this time is of the omicron strain, so the only point is to protect the unvaccinated in any case. Even if it were true that N95's do better than surgical masks at preventing Covid-19 transmission, why torture yourself?

[rvwnsd]

On 1/19/2022 at 3:46 PM, Lucky said:

The US says it will distribute 400 million N95 masks for free through pharmacies.

Are these the same pharmacies that have been closing   for lack of staff?

CVS in Arizona is distributing them at the front cash registers. I think "pharmacy" is being used instead of "drugstore."

[+ FrankR]

2 hours ago, Todd Jenkins said:

If it makes you feel safe, great. 

Just know, masks don't really work. 

Not true - a properly fitted mask provides protection and have demonstrates the ability to slow, even prevent, the spread.
 

The CDC says that you should wear the most protective mask possible that you'll wear regularly and that fits. Respirators such as nonsurgical N95s give the most protection. KN95s and medical masks provide the next highest level of protection. Cloth masks provide less protection. The CDC says that surgical N95 masks should be reserved for health care providers.

[mike carey]

13 minutes ago, rvwnsd said:

CVS in Arizona is distributing them at the front cash registers. I think "pharmacy" is being used instead of "drugstore."

Interesting distinction (to me at least). The word 'drugstore' is not used here at all (my spell checker even puts a wriggly red line under the word). Pharmacy, chemist's or chemist shop are the usual terms, although they don't sell the same range of goods that US 'drugstores' do.

[rvwnsd]

24 minutes ago, mike carey said:

Interesting distinction (to me at least). The word 'drugstore' is not used here at all (my spell checker even puts a wriggly red line under the word). Pharmacy, chemist's or chemist shop are the usual terms, although they don't sell the same range of goods that US 'drugstores' do.

It isn't unusual to refer to the store as the "pharmacy," but technically speaking the pharmacy is the area of the store where prescription drugs and OTC meds that require an ID are dispensed. That technicality becomes important at places like Safeway that encompass a supermarket, a general merchandise selection, and a pharmacy counter.

[mike carey]

1 minute ago, rvwnsd said:

It isn't unusual to refer to the store as the "pharmacy," but technically speaking the pharmacy is the area of the store where prescription drugs and OTC meds that require an ID are dispensed. That technicality becomes important at places like Safeway that encompass a supermarket, a general merchandise selection, and a pharmacy counter.

I thought of, but omitted a comment on that in my previous post. That counter would usually be called the dispensary here. There is a distinction here between things that require a qualified pharmacist and those that don't, but that isn't reflected in what the shop is called. The Safeway issue doesn't arise here as the pharmacists' cartel (the Pharmacy Guild) has successfully lobbied to retain a ban on people who are not qualified pharmacists from owning a pharmacy. I suspect that when that changes (or one of the big retailers finds a way around it) that will be called something like the pharmacy counter but 'Chemist' will continue to be what the specialised shop is called no matter what else it sells.

[Guest]

16 minutes ago, mike carey said:

I thought of, but omitted a comment on that in my previous post. That counter would usually be called the dispensary here. There is a distinction here between things that require a qualified pharmacist and those that don't, but that isn't reflected in what the shop is called. The Safeway issue doesn't arise here as the pharmacists' cartel (the Pharmacy Guild) has successfully lobbied to retain a ban on people who are not qualified pharmacists from owning a pharmacy. I suspect that when that changes (or one of the big retailers finds a way around it) that will be called something like the pharmacy counter but 'Chemist' will continue to be what the specialised shop is called no matter what else it sells.

A chemist means something else in the US:

[Todd Jenkins]

1 hour ago, FrankR said:

The CDC says

Yeah, you lost me when you quoted the CDC. . . After the past 2 years, they've lost credibility. 

[+ FrankR]

29 minutes ago, Todd Jenkins said:

Yeah, you lost me when you quoted the CDC. . . After the past 2 years, they've lost credibility. 

Research done around the world support the CDC’s guidance.

https://youtu.be/epknnCcL1dM

[Todd Jenkins]

11 hours ago, FrankR said:

Research done around the world support the CDC’s guidance.

 

And there is also research that says anything but an N95 is useless.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/do-masks-actually-work-the-best-studies-suggest-they-don-t/ar-AANfurl 

[Todd Jenkins]

More Research:

https://www.rcreader.com/commentary/masks-dont-work-covid-a-review-of-science-relevant-to-covide-19-social-policy

 

[+ FrankR]

25 minutes ago, Todd Jenkins said:

And there is also research that says anything but an N95 is useless.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/do-masks-actually-work-the-best-studies-suggest-they-don-t/ar-AANfurl 

Anderson has no background in research or statistical analysis. He is a political science guy. His views are well known and decidedly not objective. 
https://qz.com/1144259/jeffrey-h-anderson-trump-appointee-to-bureau-of-justice-statistics-is-known-for-college-football-rankings/amp/

[+ FrankR]

26 minutes ago, Todd Jenkins said:

More Research:

https://www.rcreader.com/commentary/masks-dont-work-covid-a-review-of-science-relevant-to-covide-19-social-policy

 

I have seen similar studies about seatbelts.  And climate change. And… Dont let them warp your thinking. 

[pubic_assistance]

You sheep claiming that some piece of fabric over your mouth and nose is protecting you from an airborne virus seem to be willingly unaware that most people catch coronavirus and influenza through their eyes.

Edited February 13, 2022 by pubic_assistance

[Todd Jenkins]

6 minutes ago, FrankR said:

I have seen similar studies about seatbelts.  And climate change. And… Dont let them warp your thinking. 

And you post propaganda. You do you. I'll do me. IF MASKS WORKED in reducing transmission, CALIFORNIA and NYC would be RID of the virus because YOU HAVE to wear a mask EVERYWHERE there. Yet, they have some of the highest rates. 

REAL-LIFE shows us one thing: MASKS DON'T WORK. I live in Nashville, TN. We've been OPEN with NO mask mandate since May 2021 and guess what? Our numbers are better than other places with mask mandates. 

And we have MILLIONS of people - 16.1 million approximate - that visit DOWNTOWN NASHVILLE every year. 

HMMMM??? What does THAT tell you? 

Ok, so wear a mask, wear a muzzle, wear a ball gag - whatever you wanna do - just know: they don't work. 

 

[Todd Jenkins]

14 minutes ago, FrankR said:

And climate change

We want to start on CLIMATE CHANGE?! Bahahaha! They've been saying this for how many years!?!?!?! Honey, don't try to make your argument valid by bringing up climate change. 🙄

[+ FrankR]

7 minutes ago, pubic_assistance said:

You sheep claiming that some piece of fabric over your mouth and nose is protecting you from an airborne virus seem to be willingly unaware that most people catch coronavirus and influenza through their eyes.

My wearing a mask, custs down the number of droplets that will reach your eyes. You are welcome.