All residents of metropolitan Melbourne and Mitchell Shire are preparing to don masks after Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews' mandatory directive, which comes into effect at 11.59 pm on Wednesday 22 July.
Andrews' decree hasn't pleased Herald Sun columnist Andrew Bolt, who wrote on Monday he no longer trusted what Victoria's premier had to say about COVID-19.
"That includes his latest order to Victorians: wear face masks. On what medical basis is this necessary? For six months of this virus crisis we didn't have to wear masks," Bolt wrote.
The article carried a subheading declaring Bolt's assessment to be that, "Daniel Andrews' request that Victorians wear masks is not backed up by the science."
So what do the scientific experts say? There were no official public health orders to wear masks at the beginning of the pandemic, however experts aren't singing from the same hymn sheet as Bolt when it comes to their advice now.
Why are people being asked to wear masks in Victoria now?
At the beginning of the pandemic, there wasn't much community transmission in comparison to the recent outbreak in Melbourne. The bulk of the transmission in the early days, according to Professor Bruce Thompson, were "overseas people bringing it into Australia."
"But we're now seeing more community transmission," said Prof Thompson, the Dean of the School of Health Sciences at Swinburne University.
It's a point Bolt mentioned in his column, despite not agreeing with the introduction of masks. He wrote, "...the federal Health Department says when community transmission is low "the routine use of face masks in the community is not recommended"...."
But now with community transmission in Melbourne at an all-time high, Professor Catherine Bennett told The Feed masks should be a priority, especially with growing evidence showing their effectiveness.
"In the US, the states that had mandatory masks are doing much better than the states that don't," said Professor Catherine Bennett, Chair in Epidemiology at Deakin University.
"The evidence is now clear that there's a consistent benefit."
The mix of low community transmission and the initial understanding of the effectiveness of masks against the spread of COVID-19 meant they weren't a priority at the beginning of the pandemic.
"We've also got more information that cloth masks work, which we weren't so sure about that before...the whole point is, there's so much that's different now, than was the case three months ago," said Hassan Vally, an Associate Professor in Epidemiology at La Trobe University.
In June, a study published in the Lancet medical journal discovered people who wore a mask and kept the recommended physical distance saw transmission decrease. The study found transmission without a face mask was at 17.4 per cent, compared to the 3.1 per cent when wearing a mask.
What are WHO’s guidelines surrounding masks?
Bolt quoted outdated health advice from the World Health Organisation from April, which seemed to contradict the recent mandatory mask order in Melbourne.
He wrote, “Why, when the World Health Organisation says “the wide use of masks by healthy people in the community setting is not supported by current evidence”? … Why, when the WHO says this “may create a false sense of security, with neglect of other essential measures, such as hand hygiene practices and physical distancing, and may lead to touching the face under the masks and under the eyes”?”
This was taken from the WHO’s initial health advice sent out in April, which was updated in June. The updated health advice from WHO encouraged countries with high levels of community transmission to promote the use of masks.
“WHO advises that governments should encourage the general public to wear masks where there is widespread transmission and physical distancing is difficult, such as on public transport, in shops or in other confined or crowded environments," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on June 5 at WHO press conference.
Prof Bennett was critical of Bolt’s use of old WHO health advice, she said, “They've got a columnist who's quoting out of date statements about the applicability of masks in the general public that's not only not helpful, that's dangerous.”
Can wearing masks assist vulnerable people?
Bolt argued COVID-19 disproportionately affects the elderly, which is true. He wrote: "This virus overwhelming kills the very old, and almost every Victorian under 65 who has got sick survived."
However, according to Prof Thompson, the use of masks are "critically important for anyone in that age group." The problem, he says, is that for 20 per cent of the population, COVID-19 is an extremely serious condition.
"And so we need to protect them as much as we possibly can," he said.
Prof Hassan Valley agrees, he says, those at-risk groups should have been wearing masks before the laws even came into place.
"People have to assess their own personal risk, and if you're at risk of having a very severe outcome, why wouldn't you do every single thing you can to prevent getting infected and we know masks work," he said.
The dangers of misinformation
All experts agree there are dangers attached to misinformation of public health, especially in a global health crisis.
Prof Valley says misinformation is "incredibly unhelpful", particularly because he believes we all need to be on the same page when it comes to COVID-19.
"We need everyone to understand that the scientific evidence supports us having universal mask use," he said.
"I guess if people are going to sow seeds of doubt into the community and say things that aren't backed by the science -- it's very unhelpful."
Prof Bennett says those spreading misinformation will have their conscience to grapple with. She believes there is a need to amplify messages informing people on how to wear masks effectively and safely.
"To undermine public health messages, which are evidence-based, and to use out of date comments to back that is not only counterproductive, but it's dangerous and it could cost lives at the end of the day," she said.
"Listening to naysayers gives us more cases, that gives us more people in hospital and ICU, and it will lead to more death.
"If we don't contain this fast enough, more people will die."
People in Australia must stay at least 1.5 metres away from others. Check your state’s restrictions on gathering limits.
If you are experiencing cold or flu symptoms, stay home and arrange a test by calling your doctor or contact the Coronavirus Health Information Hotline on 1800 020 080.
