CMO Paul Kelly’s advice to wear masks is the last thing Australia wants

Chief medical officer Paul Kelly has said the words no Australian is ready hear – but there’s a stark reason why people aren’t willing to listen.

OPINION

Here we go again.

That’s what much of Australia was thinking yesterday when chief medical officer Paul Kelly urged Aussies to wear masks in the workplace and for employers to allow staff to work from home.

“If you’re away from home and indoors in a crowded place, I really very strongly suggest that you do wear masks,’’ he said.

“I am wearing a mask now. You will have noticed the Minister is wearing a mask as well. This is our leadership role for the community. This will not be forever but for the next few weeks this is the way we can actually influence.”

Health Minister Mark Butler and chief medical officer Paul Kelly spoke to the media on the growing numbers of Covid-19 cases on Tuesday. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Gary Ramage

This, Prof Kelly said, is a reaction to that fact that the third Omicron wave is “very significant” with 300,000 cases reported in the past week and the belief that it’s likely that cases are at least double that.

The mask advice isn’t mandatory though and there lies the rub. Why go on TV and make a big fuss out of something that isn’t mandated?

It’s fair to say that many of us are traumatised by the rules we’ve had inflicted on us since the start of the pandemic and this kind of vagueness makes us feel anxious about what’s next.

Over the past two years and four months, Australians have largely been obedient and followed the rules. After all, we are almost 85 per cent double vaccinated. Many of us got those vaccinations under the belief that once we did, restrictions would ease and eventually disappear altogether. Vaccinations won’t stop transmission but they do help prevent severe illness and isn’t that main thing at the end of the day?

I can only guess that Prof Kelly wasn’t able to get a mask mandate past cabinet because ministers know Aussies simply aren’t going to stick to it – we’ve had enough.

Chief medical officer Paul Kelly only advised mask wearing – it isn’t mandated. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Gary Ramage

Prof Kelly cited the fact that 5200 patients are in hospital with Covid as a reason for his advised restrictions but offered no context of what that means. For example, how many of those people were already severely ill with other conditions? How many of those people are unvaccinated?

If someone isn’t vaccinated at this stage in the game, I’m going to assume they’re happy to leave their time on this planet up to fate and I’m not willing to sit in a face mask all day to help their cause.

I’ve heard some people say that wearing a mask or working from home is a small price to pay to help each other out, but I disagree. Mask rules and working from home means people leave their houses less, it sees our fragile economy falter further and our already devastated CBDs become ghost towns once again. It means that despite being double, triple or even quadruple vaccinated, we’re still letting fear rule our lives.

Covid masks rules in Brisbane in 2021 saw more people stay at home. Picture: Brad Fleet

I was recently in the UK where all Covid rules have been scrapped. Before I went I thought this was madness but having experienced it for myself, I can see it’s the only way forward. In the UK, people’s attitudes towards Covid are much more relaxed, they aren’t living in fear of being locked down and they’re moving on with their lives. Covid numbers are high but the infectious nature of the new BA.4 and BA.5 strains mean it’s very hard to control – just ask China.

Covid is here to stay and if you want to wear a mask then go for your life, Paul Kelly – just don’t expect the entire country to follow suit.

Riah Matthews is the commissioning editor for news.com.au