It may be August of 2023, but the media still can’t quit COVID alarmism. The latest COVID freak out came on Wednesday’s CNN This Morning as the assembled cast wondered whether it was time to bring back masks.
Co-host Poppy Harlow got things started by asking, “With COVID cases rising, some people are masking up. You have probably seen that in your neighborhood, work, etcetera. What does it mean for you and what does it mean for people at higher risk of severe illness?”
She then introduced chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta and asked, “I keep thinking this, when I see people with masks on ‘am I making a mistake? What should I do?’ What should we do?”
Gupta began his response with “the good news,” proclaiming that when “you look at the map of the country and look at the CDC recommendations, most of the country is considered low risk right now. It's mostly green.”
Indeed, as Gupta was speaking, CNN put up the map in question and it was overwhelming green with several states regardless of whether they be red, blue, or purple, being entirely green.
Gupta continued, “You have a few spots of yellow and a couple spots, maybe, of orange where it's high risk, but green means there’s low hospital admission rates, which is the criteria that they’re looking for whether or not we should go back to masking.”
Despite this good news, Gupta indulged Harlow’s fears, “So, let me just, sort of, break that down for you, if you're in the green area, it means the recommendation is not necessarily that you need to mask, but you still can mask for the points that you pointed out, Poppy, if you're high risk or going to be around high risk people.”
After recalling that he recently wore a mask and took a test when visiting his parents, Gupta declared, “If you're one of the lower categories, then depending on what you're doing exactly, there may be situations where you need to mask as well. So, that is, sort of, where we are. We're at an inflection point, I think right now.”
Gupta further cited “a lot of the experts” as reason to bring back masks including media favorite and classic narcissist “Peter Hotez, for example, he said he’s gone back to masking.”
“I think we're at this inflection point. Numbers have been going up. The weather is going to get cooler and drier, they're probably going to go up a little bit more. Obviously, if you have tested positive, if you have been exposed to someone with COVID-19, those are other situations where you should mask,” Gupta added.
While the media tries to pretend it is still March of 2020, CNN would be wise to consider Betteridge’s Law of Chyrons.
This segment was sponsored by 4imprint.
Here is a transcript for the August 23 show:
CNN This Morning
8/23/2023
7:45 AM ET
POPPY HARLOW: With COVID cases rising, some people are masking up. You have probably seen that in your neighborhood, work, etcetera. What does it mean for you and what does it mean for people at higher risk of severe illness? Dr. Sanjay Gupta is with us with more. I keep thinking this, when I see people with masks on “am I making a mistake? What should I do?” What should we do?
SANJAY GUPTA: Yeah, well, let me give you the good news first. I mean, if you look at the country as a whole, you look at the map of the country and look at the CDC recommendations, most of the country is considered low risk right now. It's mostly green.
You have a few spots of yellow and a couple spots, maybe, of orange where it's high risk, but green means there’s low hospital admission rates, which is the criteria that they’re looking for whether or not we should go back to masking.
So, let me just, sort of, break that down for you, if you're in the green area, it means the recommendation is not necessarily that you need to mask, but you still can mask for the points that you pointed out, Poppy, if you're high risk or going to be around high risk people.
I recently visited my parents, for example, in Florida. I wore a mask. I tested ahead of time, try to keep them safe. If you're one of the lower categories, then depending on what you're doing exactly, there may be situations where you need to mask as well. So, that is, sort of, where we are. We're at an inflection point, I think right now.
We talked to a lot of the experts that you guys know over the years, Peter Hotez, for example, he said he’s gone back to masking. Michael Osterholm said he’s probably about to start masking. Jonathan Reiner made an interesting point, he said President Biden should probably be masking because he is 80 years old, so he’s considered at higher risk, but I think we're at this inflection point. Numbers have been going up. The weather is going to get cooler and drier, they're probably going to go up a little bit more. Obviously, if you have tested positive, if you have been exposed to someone with COVID-19, those are other situations where you should mask.
