A man wears a homemade plastic face mask and mask in Manila, Philippines, Aug. 3, 2020.
A new study suggests that there may be more effective measures in the United States and elsewhere to control the spread of the Chinese Communist virus than a government mandate to wear masks.
According to the Heritage Foundation study, the 25 counties with the highest number of officially reported cases of CCP virus infection in the U.S., and 97 of the top 100 infected counties, have implemented strict mask-wearing measures.
In a study released Dec. 27, the conservative foundation’s Center for Data Analysis said, “From Oct. 1 to Dec. 13, the number of confirmed COVID-19 infections in the United States increased by 8.8 million cases. “
The study by the data analysis center said, “Of the 25 counties with the highest total number of new cases, all of those 25 counties had strict masking requirements, and 21 of the 25 counties had enacted and enforced masking mandates by August, with the exception of one county that had enforced the order by October.”
The data analysis center added, “Ninety-seven of the 100 counties with the highest number of confirmed cases during this period had either a county government order mandating mask wearing or a state government order mandating mask wearing, or both.”
In 87 of those 97 counties, that mask order was in place by October. Of the remaining 10 counties, five issued mask orders in October and another five in November.
Several regulations that went into effect in October or November show that the mask orders in these counties are more stringent than before.
These 100 counties account for a little more than 39 percent of all infections in the United States and less than 40 percent of the nation’s total population.
The study is based on data provided by USA Facts, a nonpartisan data compilation center used by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other federal agencies.
The study reports that these findings are not a denial of the effectiveness of mask wearing per se, nor are they a discouragement of the practice. Instead, they point to the inadequacy of public health precautions that rely primarily on community lockdowns and mandatory masking.
Governments should adopt more effective interventions,” the researchers said. These include better measures to protect nursing home personnel, making nationwide testing possible through widespread use of rapid self-testing methods, and establishing voluntary isolation centers where infected people can recover rather than expose their families to infection.”
According to North Carolina Republican Rep. Ted Budd, former Vice President Joe Biden has said that if he is elected president, he will work to implement a national mandatory masking system, but such an approach would face bipartisan opposition in Congress.
Bard told the Epoch Times, “Aside from the fact that it’s unconstitutional to mandate people to wear masks nationwide, I think the American people are smart enough to know when they need to wear masks and when they don’t. We can do that while walking and chewing gum.”
Currently, 14 members of Congress are also physicians, including 11 Republicans and three Democrats.
Republican Rep. Andy Harris of Maryland is an M.D. and a practicing anesthesiologist. He told the Epoch Times on Dec. 29 that he, too, opposes the mandate.
I oppose it for two reasons,” he said. One is the constitutional basis, and the other is the scientific basis. There’s actually no evidence yet that this mandatory vaccination measure will actually have a significant impact.”
He said, “Keeping social distance and protecting the vulnerable is probably much more important than wearing a mask, and I signed the Great Barrington (Mass.) Declaration because I think it’s probably time we start thinking about the way we’re going to prevent the epidemic.”
He was referring to a statement released in October that declared, “The current lockdown policy is having a devastating impact on public health in the short and long term. The results (to name just a few) include lower childhood vaccination rates, worsened cardiovascular disease outcomes, reduced cancer screenings and worsened mental health.”
North Carolina Republican Congressman Greg Murphy is a urologist. He stated, “I’ve been wearing masks in the operating room for over thirty years. They’re annoying, they’re crude, and when I walk out of the operating room, the first thing I do is take off my mask.”
Nonetheless, Murphy also said, “Even though it’s not perfect, it’s a piece of the epidemic prevention puzzle we’re using to, in the words of my surgeon general, ‘shake off this epidemic.'”
Murphy acknowledges that wearing a mask can be an inconvenience and “may give some people a false sense of security, but I haven’t seen anyone die from a mask. If wearing a mask offers a small chance of helping others, then why not wear one?”
Nonetheless, Murphy said he opposes a mandatory national mask ordinance.
“I don’t think people should be forced to wear masks, just like I don’t think people should be forced to get vaccinated.”
Three Democratic House spokesmen are doctors: Reps. Ami Bera of California, Paul Ruiz of California and Kim Schrier of Washington state. They did not immediately respond to The Epoch Times’ request for comment on the Heritage Foundation’s study, or on the possibility of a national mask ban.
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