Not long after Santa Barbara health officials somberly announced the first death in the county from COVID-19 on Wednesday, the State of California sent out guidance advising the public that they might want to start donning cloth face coverings. The notice was chockful of caveats, given the shortage of facemasks for medical use.
“The use of cloth face coverings could reduce the transmission of COVID-19 by individuals who do not have symptoms and may reinforce physical distancing,” the state advisory announced, adding that they were no substitute for staying six feet apart from each other and washing hands frequently.
Nor is the state saying to use N95 masks or surgical masks, both of which are imperative for health-care workers caring for patients with COVID-19. Doctors, nurses, hospital staff, and first responders will all necessarily encounter infected patients, some multiple times a day. On March 23, Cottage Health CEO Ron Werft said his hospitals had gone from their typical use of 25 masks a day to 500 as cases and visits increased, and as supplies went undelivered. Cottage , and subsequently the county , sent an appeal to residents to donate their stores.