Mandatory masks outdoors, is it useful or counterproductive?

After Lille, Bayonne, Biarritz or the municipalities of Mayenne and Ile-de-France, the mask will also become compulsory in Paris. Since August 1, it is possible to impose it and Anne Hidalgo has decided to seize this opportunity: the mayor (PS) of the capital requested it on Tuesday to Didier Lallement, the police prefect. Two specialists give us their opinion after this decision.

"One more contribution against the virus"

Dominique Costagliola, epidemiologist, member of the Academy of Sciences

"The mask is our only weapon, for us at large," defends epidemiologist Dominique Costagliolas./DR  

At the supermarket, Professor Dominique Costagliola again met people without a mask. So for this renowned epidemiologist, member of the Academy of Sciences, you have to get used to wearing it, everywhere and all the time.

Imposing the wearing of a mask in certain areas in Paris, is it useful?

DOMINIQUE COSTAGLIOLA. Yes! Although it is probably not 100% effective, it is one more contribution against the virus. This is all the more important since today, the delays to obtain the result of a test are too long to control the epidemic well. Reinforcing the wearing of a mask is therefore necessary.

What makes this more necessary in August than in March, at the height of the epidemic?

It should also have been done in March. But at that time, there was not enough of it. This is no longer the case today. New elements have changed the situation. We now know that many people are contagious, even without symptoms. Studies on other coronaviruses have also shown its beneficial effect, although putting it outdoors is surely not as effective as in an enclosed space. Carrying it in business should also be a priority.

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So why not target them, rather than parks and gardens!

You have to target everything, leave nothing to chance if you want to win the battle. As long as there is no vaccine or treatment, anything that helps to limit the number of patients in the hospital is good to take. Let's face it, this crisis will last for months, if not years. The mask is our only weapon, the general public.

With the heat wave coming, it will be extremely restrictive ...

Imagine the health professionals who wear it non-stop… Yes, it's hot, it's painful, but we get used to it. And it's always less unpleasant than being intubated. When you wear a mask, it is others you are protecting. You are making a real social choice.

"I fear a fed up effect"

Benjamin Davido, infectious disease specialist at Raymond-Poincaré hospital, in Garches (Hauts-de-Seine)

"There is a risk that the mask will be assimilated to a sanction", fears the infectious disease specialist Benjamin Davido./DR  

He himself would have been keen on doing prevention with young people. The teaching on the mask, yes, the constraint, no. For Benjamin Davido, infectious disease specialist at Raymond-Poincaré hospital, in Garches (Hauts-de-Seine), this measure risks being counterproductive.

The mandatory mask outdoors, is it a good idea?

BENJAMIN DAVIDO . Today, there is no scientific proof to judge its usefulness. We know, however, that the mask is twenty times more effective when worn in a closed place than outdoors. While it is unfortunately still difficult to impose it in certain stores or cinemas, making it compulsory in the open, with fines, is counterproductive. You have to be educational, not punitive. We risk being assimilated to a sanction.

Is it feasible to ask young people to wear it on the banks of the Seine?

It's impossible! Rather, we should create marked areas where it would be recommended and scouting. With this measure, we risk falling into a trap: that people desert the quays of the Seine to organize their own “Covid parties”, evenings where people get together and become infected as in the United States. In most seaside resorts, making the mask compulsory doesn't shock me, but this measure must be suspended at the end of the holidays. On the other hand, why in Paris, which is far from being crowded in August? In recent days, I was just afraid that this decision would be taken in the capital. The mask must remain a health protection tool. With this obligation, I fear a fed up effect.

He went from “unnecessary” during confinement to “mandatory” today. Do we not risk blurring the health message?

I agree and the risk is that we end up with a conspiracy theory on the mask. It really scares me.