Vote Democrat to wear a mask? Biden says Americans must mask up for AT LEAST 3 months as CDC warns of ‘worst fall ever’
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden has urged all Americans to ‘mask up’ outdoors for the next three months – at the same time as health officials warned disobeying their Covid-19 orders will cause unprecedented suffering.
“Every single American should be wearing a mask when they are outside for the next three months at a minimum,” Biden said during a press briefing on Thursday, adding in his characteristic awkward cadence that “every governor should mandate mandatory mask wearing.”
A nationwide mask mandate would save “over 40,000 lives,” according to the experts, Biden claimed.
It wasn’t clear which experts supplied the Democrat with that number, or if they had any relation to the experts who initially predicted the virus would kill millions of Americans. There was also no explanation forthcoming about where the three-month figure came from, as the incubation period for Covid-19 is believed to last at most 14 days and most patients recover within two weeks after showing symptoms.
However, Biden’s guidance would keep Americans “masked up” until after Election Day, perhaps even encouraging them to stay home and cast their vote by absentee ballot. Voting by mail has become the subject of a major partisan tug-of-war, with President Donald Trump insisting it opens up the nation to unprecedented fraud, while the Democrats insist it’s the only way to ensure Americans’ safety during the pandemic.
Biden’s admonishment came just hours after Centers for Disease Control director Robert Redfield issued a dire prediction for those Americans who don’t follow his agency’s instructions regarding the virus. Neglecting to wear a mask, social distance, wash hands and “be smart about crowds” will lead to “the worst fall, from a public health perspective, we’ve ever had,” Redfield warned in an interview with WebMD.
A Covid-19 “second wave,” combined with the looming flu season and colder weather driving people indoors, will create a perfect storm of circumstances that could overwhelm the US healthcare system, he explained, adding that “I’m not asking some of America to do it – we all have to do it.”
Redfield encouraged Americans to get a flu shot, echoing the advice of other US public health officials, though a number of studies have suggested flu vaccines can actually increase the risk of contracting non-flu respiratory viruses in a phenomenon dubbed “virus interference.” Even the CDC admits the effectiveness of the flu vaccine hovers around 40 to 60 percent – and that’s in a best-case scenario when the vaccine is well-matched to the strain of virus circulating that year.
The science on face masks also remains somewhat dubious, especially regarding the cloth face coverings most Americans have donned in lieu of hard-to-find N95 masks, but that has not stopped dozens of governors, mayors, and chain stores from requiring they be worn at all times. Some especially enthusiastic mask fans have even called for their usage at home.
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