That is the question........
And now, I am getting it from both directions. "Make Masks Mandatory!" is the flavor from one side.
"Don't take away our Freedom--don't make masks mandatory!" is what I am hearing from the other side.
Meanwhile--the Escambia Board of County Commissioners does NOT have this for action at our upcoming meeting--(although it may be brought before the board as an "add-on" by a member.....)
Meanwhile, here is an example of a thoughtful back and forth email exchange between a constituent and I on this topic from this morning............intelligent, thoughtful, respectful, cordial, un-emotional..
"Mr. Bergosh,
Usually I write to you about XXXXXX. But tonight I am
writing to you as someone retired from healthcare. Forty three years
actually. Thirty three of those running a clinical laboratory. I
have been through Aids, Ebola, Swine flu, and many other similar outbreaks,
epidemics, and pandemics. So I am very familiar with what the right thing
to do is regarding curbing the rising infections.
Mayor Robinson should be commended for implementing
mandatory masks. While our Governor and President do nothing.
The Governor's statement the other day stating people will
just need to do the right thing stunned me. Well if people always did the right
thing we wouldn't need laws. It could even be said we wouldn't be in the
middle of a pandemic if people did the right thing. How many laws have
been passed to protect people from themselves? Wearing seat belts, no
texting and driving, no drinking and driving.......to name a few.
I ask you and the other commissioners to please follow Mayor
Robinson's lead. Make face masks mandatory in Escambia county. There is
absolutely no reason a business should have to shut down if only everyone would
social distance and wear masks in public places. South Korea and Japan
are excellent examples of that.
Regards,
XXX XXXXXXX"
My response:
"XXX-
Thank
you for the email, and I cannot wait until XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX!
About
the mask wearing: There have been rumors circulating about The Escambia
Board of County Commissioners making mask wearing mandatory—however this has
not been brought forward onto our next agenda for July 2nd by either
the staff or the chairman Steven Barry. I understand the city has gone
that direction (mandatory mask wearing).
Nevertheless----I
am studying all sides of this topic in the event it does come before us as an
add on to the agenda. Full disclosure—I am getting PASSIONATE pleas on
both sides of this issue so I am going to look at this particular
issue very analytically—not emotionally.
To
help with my decision making—I will have a special “Coffee with the
Commissioner” event this Wednesday morning online on my Facebook site from
6:30-7:30 AM. My guests will be the CEO’s of all three local
hospitals—Baptist, Sacred Heart, and West Florida. They know I will come
prepared with questions for them about the wear/don’t wear masks in public
question—as well as other issues about capacity in their respective hospitals
and ventilator and ICU capacity. It will be a worthwhile watch this
Wednesday morning if you are available. It will be live on my
commissioner’s Facebook page here https://www.facebook.com/CommissionerBergosh/
One
issue that stands out initially and immediately to me is the fact that nobody
is wearing masks properly—and nobody is specifying what types of masks should
be worn. They should be single-use---and the surgical masks I see folks
wearing are not masks that protect the wearer from COVID-19-----it says so
right on the box packaging. Yet I see folks wearing these very same
ineffective disposable masks over and over and over—placing them on the
rear-view mirror then re-using them again and again—touching the contaminated
masks then touching their faces as well as common use items in the grocery
stores, retail stores, playground equipment, door-handles etc. This
behavior worries me—because I believe this actually exacerbates—not
helps—the
contamination issue. Then I see people walking by themselves outside on
paths or riding bikes by themselves wearing masks and I think to myself
“why?” Hand washing is the real critical behavior we need to zero in
on—this is the issue EVERYONE agrees can help.
And
then there is the enforcement issues surrounding the wear mask/don’t wear mask
question—will law enforcement become the “mask police?” My understanding
based upon the radio interviews I have heard from the Pensacola Police
Department leads me to believe the answer from them is no. So who will
compel compliance XXXX? And will this lead to more “confrontations”
between police and some citizens in the community that will be misconstrued as
police “oppression?” Will this generate more social unrest and
demonstrations?
President
Kennedy once famously quipped that governance often boils down to “….the
choosing between bad options and even worse ideas…. (paraphrased)”
There
are a lot of facts I would DEMAND before I say definitively I will or will not
support something like this. The health services and their mixed
messaging on mask-wear have not helped.
Regardless—I
won’t be a windsock politician on this—for my vote my decisions will be made
based upon cold, hard, non-politically correct FACTS.
Please
by all means let me know if you have any questions you’d like me to ask the
expert panel on Wednesday morning, and I will ask.
Have
a great weekend XXXXXX!
R/
Jeff
Bergosh
Escambia
Board of County Commissioners,
District
1
221
Palafox Place Suite 400
Pensacola,
FL 32502
850-595-4910
office
850-377-2209
Voicemail
Twitter--
@jeffbergosh"
10 comments:
I inadvertently deleted the following comment that was posted Copied from an OSHA certified friend:
So Masks?
I am OSHA 10&30 certified. I knobw some of you are too. I don’t really know WHY OSHA hasn’t come forward and stopped the nonsense BUT
I wanna cover 3 things
• N95 masks and masks with exhale ports
• surgical masks
• filter or cloth masks
Okay so upon further inspection OSHA says some masks are okay and not okay in certain situations.
If you’re working with fumes and aerosol chemicals and you give your employees the wrong masks and they get sick you can be sued.
• N95 masks: are designed for CONTAMINATED environments. That means when you exhale through N95 the design is that you are exhaling into contamination. The exhale from N95 masks are vented to breath straight out without filtration. They don’t filter the air on the way out. They don’t need to.
Conclusion: if you’re in Stewart’s and the guy with Covid has N95 mask his covid breath is unfiltered being exhaled into Stewart’s (because it was designed for already contaminated environments, it’s not filtering your air on the way out)
• Surgical Mask: these masks were designed and approved for STERILE environments. The amount of particles and contaminants in the outside and indoor environments where people are CLOGG these masks very Very quickly. The moisture from your breath combined with the clogged mask with render it “useless” IF you come in contact with Covid and your mask traps it You become a walking virus dispenser. Everytime you put your mask on you are breathing the germs from EVERYWHERE you went. They should be changed or thrown out every “20-30 minutes in a non sterile environment”
Cloth masks: today three people pointed to their masks as the walked by me entering Lowe’s. They said “ya gotta wear your mask BRO” I said very clearly “those masks don’t work bro, in fact they MAKE you sicker” the “pshh’d” me.
By now hopefully you all know CLOTH masks do not filter anything. You mean the American flag one my aunt made? Yes. The one with sunflowers that looks so cute? Yes. The bandanna, the cut up t-shirt, the scarf ALL of them offer NO FILTERING whatsoever. As you exhale you are ridding your lungs of contaminants and carbon dioxide. Cloth masks trap this carbon dioxide the best. It actually risks health. The moisture caught in these masks can become mildew ridden over night. Dry coughing, enhanced allergies, sore throat are all symptoms of a micro-mold in your mask.
Ultimate Answer: N95 blows the virus into the air from a contaminated person.
The surgical mask is not designed for the outside world and will not filter the virus upon inhaling through it. It’s filtration works on the exhale. (Like a vacuum bag it only works one way)
Cloth masks are WORSE than none.
The CDC wants us to keep wearing masks. The masks don’t work.
*Occupational Safety & Health Administration sited.
The top American organization for safety.
They regulate and educate asbestos workers, surgical rooms, you name it.
If your mask gives you security wear it, just know it is a false sense of security.
If stores stopped enforcing it no one would continue this nonsense.
==============================
If work requires you to wear a mask, OSHA requires that your employer verifies you are receiving the minimum of 19.5% oxygen level by law! Are your oxygen levels being monitored while at work? Are you experiencing dizziness and headaches? This is a written law NOT a recommendation! I guarantee if employees started citing law and demanding their employers follow the law then the masks would go away!
OSHA recommends wearing a mask.
https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/covid-19/covid-19-faq.html
They said to refer to the CDC for more information.
Here is some other information I found about these masks:
https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/personal-protective-equipment-infection-control/n95-respirators-surgical-masks-and-face-masks#s1
Surgical masks:
"Surgical masks may also help reduce exposure of your saliva and respiratory secretions to others."
N95 Respirators:
"An N95 respirator is a respiratory protective device designed to achieve a very close facial fit and very efficient filtration of airborne particles."
Finally, the origins of the viral post about masks seems dubious. Politifact has rated it as false:
https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2020/jun/25/facebook-posts/no-osha-does-not-say-masks-dont-work-against-covid/
Snopes has rated it as mostly false, giving more information that there are different types of N95 masks and that OSHA doesn't certify its trainers.
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/effectiveness-face-masks/
The Mayoclinic also recommends wearing masks:
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/coronavirus/in-depth/coronavirus-mask/art-20485449
To me, if it's an extra layer of protection, we should utilize it.
A note on hospital capacity: without prevention, then we will surely run over capacity.
Surgeons & OR nurses have worn surgical masks at times for their entire shifts, throughout their entire careers. Without becoming hypoxic during surgeries! Surgical masks & their effects on oxygenation have been studied, & unless you have an obstructed airway, a surgical mask does not interfere with respiratory gas exchange. I’ve discussed this with my Mother’s pulmonary Doctor, due to the fact she has mild COPD.
Surgical & cloth masks aren’t FILTERING anything, including oxygen or Co2, unlike n95 respirator masks do. Surgical & cloth masks serve one purpose & that is to MINIMIZE droplets which carry bacteria & viruses from leaving the nose/mouth area of the mask wearer, and from landing on the nose/mouth area of another mask wearing individual. That’s why they’re being recommended to MINIMIZE SPREAD of infectious droplets!
However, an n95 mask does restrict air flow because it’s filtering. That’s why a surgical or cloth mask are being recommended.
Let me ask you this: why do we have seat belts and air bags? Haven’t air bags been shown to at times cause death? If a seat belt isn’t worn properly, it too won’t prevent bodily injury. Why do we have either in our vehicles? Why do we have seat belts & air bags, but still need breaks?
Hand washing, masks, & socially distancing... it really comes down to a matter of common sense.
Not ever going buy into the face mask BS. Not ever going to wear something that causes me to breath harder. My life, my choice.
I am concerned as to the amount of dis trust that all of this has created in our own doctors. many claim that they simply up the amount of case for their benefits and many ofther ugly things that you hear.
Masks are necessary to help people like me. So that I as an old woman could live a semi normal life for the last few years that I have left.
If people would wear masks I would be able to go to a restaurant and sit on the outside, go to the beach, go to a mall and even travel. but because many won't I can't.
People name the economy but for whom. only for them? How a bout their parents,uncles, grandparents, do we then deserve to die? Do they understand that they could infect any of us
How they grown us to become so insensitive of others?
I guess m any of these people don't care what happens to us. but, eventually they will grow old .
Elderly and immune compromised will never be safe until young and healthy get immunities...the longer we stretch this out, the more elderly will die...mathematical certainty
Wow! As a retired Safety Manager from one of the area hospitals lots of comments and concerns. First I will say information put out by CDC, WHO, and others has done nothing more than confuse people. If I would have done my job the way they are doing theirs I would have been fired. No wonder people aren't listening.
Surgical masks are designed to protect the surgical field, not the wearer, ref AORN. However if a person has or suspects they have the virus they should wear a surgical mask to protect others around them. In an emergency it like a doubled handkerchief can get close to filtering down to 3 microns. The Covid virus is smaller than 3 microns but any protection is better than none.
The N 95 filters down to 3 microns and is a respirator that filters incoming air unlike the surgical masks.
What/where is the risk assessment and analysis? How much of the spike is from increased testing? How much of the Florida spike is in the panhandle vs highly populated Miami, Orlando, Jax etc.? How much information has CDC etc put out education wise? The CDC website says a multilayered cloth mask is good enough so I don't need a tight fit respirator? I can make a mask from women's nylons as long as it is 2 or more layers? OSHA only regulates employees but can be used as a reference. An honest risk assessment, not an opinion, needs to be done that can be pointed to by the BOC to make a decision about even highly recommending protective equipment. If you tell me I have to wear a surgical mask to do business in the county are you assuming liability if I follow your orders and get Covid anyway? Recommend vs mandate? A lot to look at and consider for everyone's safety
The mixed messaging was because we didn't understand how the virus spread. Once it started to spread so quickly, we were learning asymptomatic people could spread the virus through droplets. In light of this new information, the CDC and WHO now advise wearing masks.
Covid is deadly. Wear a mask. BLM is socialism.
So disheartening watching this chronology play out.
1. Minimize gatherings to 50 people
2. Minimize gatherings to 10 People
3. Stay at home order, restaurants, bars, schools, gyms, beaches, condos all close
4. Businesses open, restaurants, bars, gyms, condo rentals all open
5. Perhaps masks help stop the spread. Much debate about inalienable rights
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6. Businesses close, Restaurants, Bars, beaches, gyms, condos. all closed
Wear a face covering commissioner and become a proponent of it before it's too late. Too use a recent phrase. "What do you got to lose"...Jeez
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