Italian finance police check protective masks that were seized because they were being sold for exorbitant prices by Italian companies, in Turin, Italy, March 3, 2020. Pictue taken March 3, 2020.
A United States doctor has called for a clarion call for Americans to stop buying face masks.
Dr. Jerome Adams a surgeon from US General took it to Twitter to express his distress about people buying face masks in response to the rising number of coronavirus cases in the US. He said that face masks are not effective in preventing the said virus.
He also stressed that the sudden frenzy and panic buying of these masks will lead to a shortage of supply even for healthcare providers which can put communities at more risk of contracting diseases.
Moreover, he said that staying at everyday preventive actions such as frequent handwashing, covering of face when sneezing and coughing, and staying home when sick are far more effective protections from the virus than wearing a facemask. He also encouraged people to get a flu shot, saying that if there are lesser patients with flu there will be more resources available to combat coronavirus.
Adams further added that facemasks could even increase the risk of exposure to flu or coronavirus of people who are not comfortable wearing them because they tend to frequently adjust the mask and touch their face more with their hands.
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The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said last month that they do not recommend the use of facemasks, however, it was incidental that the recommendation was made the very day the first COVID-19 case was reported in the US.
On top of this, medical shops in the US have already reported shortage in the availability of facemasks since the news of coronavirus reaching the US surfaced. Panic has drive citizens to pharmacies and medical supply shops to purchase masks and respirators despite the continues plea of medical professionals to stop the panic buying.
According to a professor of preventive medicine at the Vanderbilt University of Medicine, Dr. William Schaffner, the sudden demand for facemasks is a psychological thing where people feel rather helpless, thus, they get masks to move the locus of control back to themselves in situations that they know they cannot control.
The instant demand for masks has prompted sellers to raise prices, which in turn have meant a deficit of supply for healthcare frontliners who need them. It was also noted that some Chinese Americans have been buying masks in bulk to send to their families overseas.
The demand for facemasks has shot up to its highest in month. Based on the data provided by Helium 10 to CNN, in the past 30 days, Amazon users have searched "N95 mask" more that 862,000 times compared to the 4,500 times in was searched in the month of December.
As of the moment, data on the coronavirus shows that there are already at least 126 confirmed cases in the US out of the more than 92,000 cases reported world wide. The death toll of the virus has risen to more than 3,200 and there are have been 9 reported fatalities in the US.
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