‘If masks don’t work, why do surgeons wear them?’

Julie Reeder
Julie Reeder
Dr. Jim Meehan, a surgeon who has performed over 10,000 surgeries wearing a mask recently did an op-ed where he explained the difference between surgeons wearing masks and the general public wearing masks for COVID-19.“The premise that surgeons wearing masks serves as evidence that ‘masks must work to prevent viral transmission’ is a logical fallacy that I would classify as an argument of false equivalence, or comparing ‘apples to oranges,’” Meehan said. “Although surgeons do wear masks to prevent their respiratory droplets from contaminating the surgical field and the exposed internal tissues of our surgical patients, that is about as far as the analogy extends.”They also wear masks to prevent droplets or spray from getting on them.The Centers for Disease Contr
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