The Academy of Medicine recommends this Friday the generalized wearing of the mask, including for models less perfected than that of caregivers. The mask should even be made compulsory for outings during the confinement period and when it is lifted, she says.
“It has been established that people in the incubation period or in a state of asymptomatic carriage excrete the virus and maintain the transmission of the infection. In France, in this context, the general wearing of a mask by the population would constitute a logical addition to the barrier measures currently in force, ”estimates the Academy.
However, in a situation of “mask shortage” as currently in France, the priority of allocation of surgical masks or FFP2, more protective, must go to professionals and health structures, underlines the Academy. Who "recommends that the wearing of a general public mask, also known as an alternative mask, be made compulsory for the necessary outings during the confinement period".
"The National Academy of Medicine recommends that the practical indications for the manufacture of such a mask be widely brought to the attention of the population", she continues, referring to online tutorials, like that of the French Society of sterilization science.
The Academy also considers that during the future lifting of the containment of the population, "the compulsory wearing of a mask [...] should be maintained", in the context of "maintaining the barrier measures currently recommended until the control of the circulation of the virus evidenced by the absence of new cases declared during a period of 14 days ”.
"Big mistake"
The doctrine of Emmanuel Macron and his government concerning masks remains for the time being that masks must be reserved in priority for nursing staff and nursing home staff, but that it is useless to generalize them to the whole population.
This policy, also followed in the United States, was recently described as "big mistake" by the director general of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, George Gao. "Many affected individuals are asymptomatic, or do not yet show symptoms: with a mask, you can prevent droplets carrying the virus from escaping and infecting others," he argues in an article in the Science magazine spotted by Le Monde.
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In an open letter published on March 20 in our columns, several great scientific figures also called on the government to "generalize the wearing of masks". Under pressure, he recently ordered “more than a billion” masks, notably from China.
According to the Minister of Health, Olivier Véran, these masks are intended for "all those who, not being caregivers, will be able to find with guaranteed masks a good way to equip themselves, to reassure themselves and to protect themselves"
