Originally published in Hideaway Lake News on May 29, 2021
The CDC issuing new mask guidelines has sent some people into a frenzy of fear and panic and has made others throw up their hands and say it’s about time. It does not matter which group you belong to, the reality is that this change is based on excellent data that have been collected ever since we started mass vaccinations.
Real world data have shown that the vaccines are working very well in preventing transmission, severe disease and death. Although it is possible that you may get infected with COVID-19 even after complete vaccination, the chances are extremely small, and even then, the chances that you will end up severely sick on a ventilator or die from it are miniscule. We take risks everyday when we drive, eat, pop a pill or go for a hike. Life is never zero risk. We each make an informed decision, consciously or subconsciously, everytime we engage in an activity of living, about how much risk we are willing to tolerate. This includes getting vaccines and wearing masks.
If you are the person who threw up their hands and yelled “finally”, then please don’t be judgmental of those who still walk around with a mask regardless of vaccination status. Each of us has a different level of risk tolerance and we should allow people to do what they feel is best for their own health. On the other hand, if you are not yet psychologically ready to take off that mask despite being fully vaccinated, then there is no harm in continuing to wear one. Just don’t panic when you see someone else not wearing a mask. The biggest fear now is that the person not wearing a mask could be lying and is brazenly going about without a mask when they have not been vaccinated. Remember the science, the risk of that guy infecting you and causing you severe disease is extremely small. We also have good data that the vaccines are very effective against severe disease from all the variants too!
In recent times, just before the mask update, the CDC also upgraded airborne to the number one mode of transmission instead of droplet transmission which was considered the main mode up until now. Cloth masks mainly provide droplet protection and not airborne protection. This means that avoiding large crowds in indoor areas with poor ventilation becomes even more critical if you are unvaccinated.
The vaccines have been a scientific miracle. They have exceeded all my expectations. I have to be honest, I was very sceptical when people were talking about a vaccine in 2021. I am thrilled to have been proven wrong. We now have vaccines whose safety and efficacy have been firmly established after 274 million doses over almost 6 months. If any problems show up later, we know they are going to be extremely rare. Again, nothing is risk free.
So I for one am very pleased to see the CDC adjust guidelines based on data. That is what following the science means. Let us not panic about what the other guy is not doing to protect us, instead let’s focus on what each of us can do to protect ourselves. Let’s get vaccinated!
Best of health to us all and here’s to a cautious crawl towards normal.