Why Philadelphia is bringing back its mask mandate

Why Philadelphia is bringing back its mask mandate¹

Transcript²

NPR's Leila Fadel speaks with Dr. Leana Wen about Philadelphia's decision to reinstate a citywide mask mandate <> in the wake of rising COVID-19 cases.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Did you think mask mandates³ were a thing of the past? Well, they're not. Beginning today, Philadelphia will be the first major U.S. city to return to requiring a mask at all restaurants, shops, schools, offices and other indoor public spaces. Some business owners and residents have filed suit to end the requirement, but the city says it needs to take steps now to respond to a sharp rise in new COVID cases and the omicron variant⁴ BA.2. Dr. Leana Wen, the former health commissioner⁵ of Baltimore, is among the critics who say Philadelphia's latest move is unnecessary and confusing. And she joins us now via Skype. Good morning.

LEANA WEN: Good morning.

FADEL: So, Doctor, when you've been critical of Philadelphia's decision, why?

WEN: Well, I certainly understand if individuals want to choose to mask. And if they do, they should be wearing an N95 or equivalent, a high-quality mask, to protect themselves. I also think it makes sense for institutions like in universities or workplaces to want to institute additional protections. It's very different, though, if we're talking about a government-imposed mandate. Those types of mandates should really be a last resort. That's always been the understanding from the beginning of the pandemic, that these measures are implemented⁶ when there is no other choice. And right now, it's not that. I mean, in the future, there may be a new variant that evades prior immunity⁷. Hospitals might actually be at capacity. And my fear is that it's crying wolf, that if you tell people all the time it's a crisis but it's actually not a crisis, that people are not going to listen.

FADEL: So then are we, in your view, at a moment in the pandemic with vaccines⁸ where people will just have to learn to live with COVID and make their own decisions about what protective measures they want to take?

WEN: This is not 2020 or 2021. The tools that were used at that time were a lot more limited. Back in 2020, all we had were masks and distancing. Now we have vaccines and boosters that protect you very well against severe disease. We have tests. I mean, people can also choose to test, for example, before getting together, especially if there are vulnerable individuals there. And we have all kinds of treatments that need to be scaled up. There needs to be a lot more done to make them available to individuals or more readily available to individuals. But I think we need to acknowledge that COVID is here for the foreseeable future. We are going to see surges like this, and we have to figure out how we're going to live with this and not upend our lives all the time.

FADEL: Now, you wrote in The Washington Post that other cities should not follow Philadelphia's lead. So how do you draw the line between being overly protective and being proactive?

WEN: It's really difficult. And look, I don't want to second-guess Philadelphia officials' decision because they're already under attack from so many different places. But I don't think that other cities should follow. I think cities have so many more tools at their disposal, too. For example, if they see that there is an increase in cases, they could ramp⁹ up testing, they could scale up treatment and make treatment options more readily available. They can also hand out free N95s or KN95s and the equivalent masks because these high-quality masks - if you're going to wear a mask, wear a high-quality mask. People should not be wearing a cloth mask thinking that they're well protected. There's a lot more that we can do that don't have to get into the category of mandating¹⁰ masks, which, at the end of the day, may not actually do that much in terms of reducing transmission on a population level.

FADEL: During the pandemic, the U.S. has typically followed the U.K. by a few weeks. And the U.K. has seen a significant increase in COVID from the BA.2 subvariant. What can we learn from health officials there?

WEN: Well, we've seen in the U.K. that indeed there has been a rise in cases due to BA.2, which is a lot more transmissible than even the original omicron variant. However, here in the U.S. thus far, and also what we saw in the U.K., too, is that there has been a decoupling between infections and hospitalizations. Here in the U.S., about 50% of the country contracted omicron during this last surge. And I certainly hope that that gives protection in addition to people who are vaccinated¹¹ and boosted and therefore that can help to prevent our hospitals from once again becoming overwhelmed.

FADEL: Dr. Leana Wen is the former health commissioner of Baltimore. Thank you, Dr. Wen.

WEN: Thank you, Leila.

1 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 mandates   

托管（mandate的第三人称单数形式）

参考例句：

• Individual mandates would require all people to purchase health insurance. 个人托管要求所有人都要购买健康保险。
• While I agree with those benefits, I'm not a supporter of mandates. 我同意上述好处，我不是授权软件的支持者。

4 variant   

adj.不同的，变异的；n.变体，异体

参考例句：

• We give professional suggestions according to variant tanning stages for each customer.我们针对每位顾客不同的日晒阶段，提供强度适合的晒黑建议。
• In a variant of this approach,the tests are data- driven.这个方法的一个变种，是数据驱动的测试。

5 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

6 implemented   

v.实现( implement的过去式和过去分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• This agreement, if not implemented, is a mere scrap of paper. 这个协定如不执行只不过是一纸空文。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The economy is in danger of collapse unless far-reaching reforms are implemented. 如果不实施影响深远的改革，经济就面临崩溃的危险。 来自辞典例句

7 immunity   

n.优惠；免除；豁免，豁免权

参考例句：

• The law gives public schools immunity from taxation.法律免除公立学校的纳税义务。
• He claims diplomatic immunity to avoid being arrested.他要求外交豁免以便避免被捕。

8 vaccines   

疫苗，痘苗( vaccine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His team are at the forefront of scientific research into vaccines. 他的小组处于疫苗科研的最前沿。
• The vaccines were kept cool in refrigerators. 疫苗放在冰箱中冷藏。

9 ramp   

n.暴怒，斜坡，坡道；vi.作恐吓姿势，暴怒，加速；vt.加速

参考例句：

• That driver drove the car up the ramp.那司机将车开上了斜坡。
• The factory don't have that capacity to ramp up.这家工厂没有能力加速生产。

10 mandating   

托管（mandate的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• Current requirements mandating that committees keep minutes are too general. 目前对委员会要保持详细记录的指令性要求，还是太过一般化了。
• Mandating that workers who quit without permission forfeit a month's wages. 规定工人私自离岗将受到罚没一个月工资的处罚。

11 vaccinated   

[医]已接种的，种痘的，接种过疫菌的

参考例句：

• I was vaccinated against tetanus. 我接种了破伤风疫苗。
• Were you vaccinated against smallpox as a child? 你小时候打过天花疫苗吗？