The 8th wave is gaining ground on French territory and certain health restrictions could indeed return in the weeks to come if the situation continues to deteriorate. For the time being, wearing a mask or barrier gestures are only a distant memory for many people, to the chagrin of specialists.
Indeed, as shown by the CoviPrev survey by Public Health France on the evolution of behavior during the epidemic, carried out in September, the proportion of French people wearing the mask in public has fallen to its lowest level since the start of the health crisis.
Today, 76% of French people admit to wearing a mask less often or no longer wearing it at all in enclosed public places. In May 2022, this figure stood at 58%. In public transport, known to promote contamination, 61% no longer wear it against 23% in May.
As Antoine Flahault confided to 20 Minutes, the Covid-19 is now considered something benign by most people. “The authorities have not based the obligation to wear the mask, nor its lifting, on specific health indicators and scientific arguments”, explains the epidemiologist and director of the Institute of Global Health in Geneva. In his view, it would be necessary to improve pedagogy with the general public, so that people follow the recommendations more. A “Covid weather” could be a solution. But what form would that take?
For the French to follow health recommendations more, they should be better explained. This could thus take the form of a “Covid weather” “with a bulletin each day, with colors to illustrate the degree of viral circulation, as for the weather the next day with temperatures and rain. Except that there, when the Covid weather would turn orange or red, that would mean that the mask must be put back on.”, describes Dr Jérôme Marty, general practitioner and president of the French Union for Free Medicine, in the columns of 20 Minutes. How would that really translate to you?
“The image of the weather is very telling! We understand very well when rain is announced that you have to take an umbrella. Covid weather would make it possible to manage the risk in a more informed and wise way”, underlines Antoine Flahault, always with our colleagues.
Thus, several experts believe that such a measure could be a viable solution, because it would allow the French to better understand the evolution of the virus on the territory. This could therefore lead many people to wear their masks more when they see that their department is particularly under pressure at a specific time.
