Charles Teves
Palace Spokesperson Harry Roque continues to spread inaccurate information on how people could protect themselves from contracting the deadly COVID-19.
In a press briefing, he reiterated his statement that wearing protective gear is equivalent to getting vaccinated against the coronavirus.
“Sa pag-aaral po, talagang nakakatulong po na makaiwas ang kaparehong … face mask and face shield, no? So together, I understand the statistical… uh… the percentage of helping and avoiding COVID is almost equivalent to having a vaccine.” he said when asked if the Government has considered removing the face mask and face shield mandate as they only add the to the expense of the public.
Palace Spokesperson @attyharryroque repeated on June 3 his wrong claim equating the protection from using face masks and face shields to getting vaccinated against #COVID19.#factcheckph #COVID19PH #CoronaVirusFacts pic.twitter.com/tFXdTgJ1sq
— VERA Files (@verafiles) June 8, 2021
In a previous briefing, Roque said the same thing.
“Statistically, kapag ikaw po ay nag-face mask, face shield, at distancing, halos equivalent po ang proteksyon niyan sa bakuna.
“So sakin, sa siyensya, may basehan. Sa gastos, bagamat nagastusan ang ating mga kababayan eh halos lahat naman ay meron ng face shield so wala ng extrang gastos.
“It is a scientific fact that the wearing of both masks and face shields contribute substantially to the reduction of Covid-19 cases. Right now, parang walang kinakailangang compromise dahil it is a scientific fact na nakakatulong ang face shield,” he told the media.
A study from the Lancet journal published last year in June states that face masks and face shields do protect from COVID-19, but getting vaccinated is another thing.
Former special adviser to the National Task Force Against COVID-19 Dr. Anthony Leachon also clarified that one “cannot equate” the protection provided by face masks and face shields to that of receiving a dose.
He told VERA Files that personal protective gears do not give permanent protection and are not meant to produce antibodies to create an immune response, which only vaccines can do.
And to achieve immunity that would help the economy bounce back, an extensive vaccination is necessary.
Health experts from Meedan have explained that protective gears are “not sufficient to stop transmission,” so getting inoculated is still the better option.
Despite the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the World Health Organization (WHO) not advocating the use of face shields, the Department of Health (DOH) insists that wearing protective gear should remain mandatory based on the “conditional recommendation” of the Philippine Society for Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (PSMID).
