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A lot of the early don't wear masks was a lot more about preserving supply for people like hospital and other critical personnel that needed to continue working
by rtkwe 7y ago
A lot of the early don't wear masks was a lot more about preserving supply for people like hospital and other critical personnel that needed to continue working and had no way to avoid or distance from infected people. There's no real way I can think of to say 'yes masks are effective but you shouldn't get them because we need them for doctors' that doesn't wind up with more people buying masks and deeper shortages early.
- bobbydroptables 7y agoProblem with this idea was twofold: 1. It completely misunderstands the supply chain. By the time this message was out there, masks were already mostly sold out in retail places. Even a slight increase in demand will cause that because of JIT manufacturing. Anyway, by that time the healthcare system and the government had already taken over the supply chain for all new masks. And obviously hospitals don't buy masks from Home Depot 2. In fighting any emergent public health crisis, the number one thing you need is the public's trust. Why destroy it for essentially no gain.