Coronavirus: New York insists on wearing two masks but already says when they will no longer be needed

NEW YORK.- Even with the memory of the refrigerated trucks full of bodies of coronavirus victims, New York tries to overcome the peak of the health crisis with a vaccination campaign it brings hope to the people. However, in this context, the mayor of the city – the most affected by the pandemic in the United States, the country with the highest number of victims in the world -, Bill de Blasio, yesterday asked the entire population to put on two masks at the same time, on top of each other.

“Until June, keep doing exactly what you’re doing,” he said before asking that “don’t just wear a mask”. “Take two. We may continue with this recommendation for a while, depending on what happens,” added.

After that, the mayor stressed that the recommendation of this use until June is due to the fact that the authorities consider that it will be then when they manage to vaccinate five million people against the Covid19.

“June is when we want to reach the five million fully vaccinated New Yorkers and June is the first time we would consider changing the rules on masks,” he said and continued: “We are very concerned about the variants, they are a big risk factor.”

With this request, De Blasio joins the recommendation of Anthony Fauci, the main person responsible for the fight against the virus in the country and who during the administration of Donald Trump had several crossings with the now former president. A few weeks ago, the expert said that wearing two masks at the same time increases protection.

“It’s a physical blanket to keep drops and viruses out. If they have a physical blanket with one diaper and put another on top of it, it makes sense that that’s probably more effective, ”Fauci said.

The United States is the country worst affected by the pandemic in global numbers, with 28,261,585 cases and 502,660 deaths. New York has already confirmed 1,604,892 infections and 47,037 deaths, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University.

After starting the year with alarming figures, such as 300,000 new infections in a single day and more than half a million deaths since the start of the epidemic, the United States has launched a mass vaccination campaign harangued by the president’s promise. Joe biden about what in July, 300 million people will be vaccinated.

The context is problematic. The country is trying to get doses amid a global shortage that is affecting even world powers, which despite having the resources to buy vaccines, cannot do so because the laboratories that produce them are being held up by the manufacturing times and huge demand.

In the midst of this tension yesterday, the Johnson & Johnson company confirmed that it expects to be able to send around 4 million doses of your vaccine when you receive an authorization in the United States. This single-dose drug will be reviewed by an external Food and Drug Administration advisory committee this week and may be cleared for emergency use soon after.

Richard Nettles, vice president of medical affairs at Janssen Pharmaceutical, a unit of Johnson & Johnson, added that the company plans to deliver 20 million doses of the vaccine before the end of March.

By the time the country applies doses of Pfizer and BioNTech and Moderna.

Reuters and DPA agencies

THE NATION

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