The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated its stance on masks and is now recommending wearing masks for up to six months a year in health care settings.
“Some facilities might consider recommending masking during the typical respiratory virus season (approximately October-April),” the agency said. The recommendation for six months of masking is applicable only in settings where health care is delivered, including nursing homes and home health. It is not intended for non-health care settings like restaurants.
For COVID-19, the CDC “continues to recommend that healthcare facilities institute facility-wide masking when masks are recommended in the community.”
Phil Kerpen, president of the public policy advocacy group American Commitment, criticized the CDC’s recommendation for half-year masking.
Ill Effects of Continued Masking
Wearing masks during the COVID-19 pandemic has been identified as causing several health complications. A systematic review of 2,168 studies that looked into the issue found that mask-wearing during the pandemic led to headaches, itchiness, and oxygen restriction, among others.A meta-analysis of multiple studies found that headache was the “most frequent symptom” among mask wearers, with a prevalence of 62 percent for general mask use and up to 70 percent when using N95 masks. Shortness of breath was observed at 33 percent for general mask use and 37 percent among N95 users.
“Masks interfered with O2-uptake and CO2-release and compromised respiratory compensation,” the review states. “Though evaluated wearing durations are shorter than daily/prolonged use, outcomes independently validate mask-induced exhaustion-syndrome (MIES) and down-stream physio-metabolic disfunctions. MIES can have long-term clinical consequences, especially for vulnerable groups.”
Masking Criteria
Presently, the CDC’s “COVID-19 Community Levels” are used to determine whether communities should take preventive action against the infection, including masking recommendations. Data on hospitalizations and infections are collected, which is then used to classify communities as low, medium, or high risk.The upcoming changes mean that only hospitalizations will be taken into consideration when determining whether requirements like masking need to be implemented in communities.
“That said, this change again is not as big a deal as it might sound and will be replaced by the hospital admission levels, which were again the main driver of the community levels.”