No proof yet that wearing double face masks is effective vs Covid-19 variants

MANILA, Philippines — There is no evidence yet that wearing two layers of face masks will protect the public against other variants of Covid-19, the Department of Health (DOH) said Saturday.

“Sa ngayon po hindi naman natin nakikita pa na ang ebidensiyang ‘yan ay sukat na at sapat na para magsabi na kailangan natin ‘yan,” DOH spokeswomen and Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said during the Laging Handa online press briefing.

(For now, we do not see this claim with evidence to know if we already need it.)

Vergeire reiterated that the minimum health protocols of wearing face mask is already 60 to 70 percent effective against contracting the respiratory disease. The percentage, Vergeire added, increases to 99 percent if the public wear their face shields and observe physical distancing.

“Ito pong double face mask ay wala pa pong ebidensya para i-rekomenda natin para sa ating mga kababayan,” she said.

(This wearing of double face mask is not supported by evidence yet for us to recommend it to the people.)

It was Dr. Anthony Fauci, the US government’s top medical adviser against Covid-19, who previously said that it was “common sense” that having an added layer of physical covering or mask can prevent respiratory droplets of the disease from spreading.

As of Jan. 29, the DOH reported that there are now 521,413 Covid-19 cases in the country, with 10,600 deaths and 475,765 recoveries.

JPV