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Expert says cloth masks are ‘useless’ in fight against Omicron

Published 12:51 22 Dec 2021 GMT

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Anti-maskers were not happy with the doctor's statement about cloth masks

CNN’s chief medical analyst Dr Leana Wen has stated that cloth masks are “useless” against the transmission of the Omicron variant. Dr Wen said that Mayor Bill de Blasio shouldn’t cancel the iconic New Year’s Eve ball drop in Times Square as proof of vaccination is required and the event is held outdoors. However, she did say that cloth masks are effectively pointless and has encouraged people to wear three-layer medical masks instead. https://twitter.com/DrLeanaWen/status/1473045198980665344 “We should be keeping the events that are safe and also the events that have fun for people too. We can’t be cancelling everything, especially if we’re going to be living with Covid for the foreseeable future,” she said. She continued: “I would say that if you choose to go, make sure that you’re vaccinated and boosted, make sure that you’re wearing a mask, even though it’s outdoors, if there are lots of people packed around you, wear a three-ply surgical mask. “Don’t wear a cloth mask.” Dr Wen dubbed cloth masks as “facial decorations before adding that there’s “no place for them in light of Omicron”. The doctor later took to Twitter to elaborate on her statement. She said: “My point isn’t that we don’t need masks, but rather that we should require masks that are most effective to prevent disease transmission. Everyone, including children, should be wearing at least a three-ply surgical mask when indoors and around others of unknown vaccination status”. https://twitter.com/DrLeanaWen/status/1473101735967313930 However the anti-maskers are out in force on Twitter, with one responding with: “Pisser. The truth slipped right off the forked tongue. It happens to the best of liars.” https://twitter.com/TimMann74125539/status/1473576014412279808 Another person who offered no evidence of his statement wrote: “Only terrorists think this way.”