Thread. First, IMCYI, a good Star article on lessons from SARS, the Precautionary Principle, & the decision to resist the possibility of aerosol transmission until the evidence was in, which is BTW the opposite of the Precautionary Principle... #covidbc https://www.thestar.com/politics/federal/2020/11/10/sars-taught-canada-how-to-respond-to-a-pandemic-why-werent-those-lessons-followed-when-covid-19-hit.html

Resisting the possibility of aerosol transmission until evidence is in doesn't only violate the Precautionary Principle, in which you err on the side of caution & don't wait for science, but *it impedes science because mask mandates provide a key means of gathering that evidence*

The mask question is even more salient re: Bonnie Henry’s handling of the current pandemic given that she was the operations lead in Toronto public health during the SARS outbreak in 2003, & the SARS Inquiry was in response to the poor handling of that outbreak..

SARS Inquiry recommended the Precautionary Principle, ie not waiting for definitive scientific evidence before implementing low-risk strategies that could save lives. Why did Henry not take those lessons? Why is she making the same mistakes that were made then, presumably by her?

Given that a recent SFU study proved that Ontario mask mandates led to a striking reduction in cases, & WHO admitted aerosol transmission back in July, the lack of mandate is now substantially weirder & seems like a repeat public health failure. https://twitter.com/Lidsville/status/1326939405391552512

Who knows what Henry's rationale for not mandating masks is - doubtful it's the ongoing N95 shortage for healthcare workers because people aren't in N95s on the street; most have a non-medical mask by now or can get one. Henry's early opacity on this Q spawned that theory...

What surprises me is that the business sector, which suffers from Covid case rise through loss of business via lockdowns or general lack of traffic, isn't clamouring for a mask mandate. A 25-40% decline in cases would benefit them greatly. Restaurants, tourism, more...