- October 29, 2024
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The top health officials in Flagler County — Department of Health Administrator Bob Snyder and Medical Director Dr. Stephen Bickel — are emphatic in their support of making masks mandatory, not just recommended.
During WNZF’s “Free For All Friday” on June 26, Snyder acknowledged that he does not have authority to make public policy, but he said, “It’s the right thing to do. … That is my belief as a public health professional. … I’m going to come out and say, ‘It should be mandated.’”
“It’s indefensible to be arguing against masks.”
STEPHEN BICKEL, medical director for Flagler's Department of Health office
Bickel said it’s a “no brainer” to require masks indoors, to stop the spread of COVID-19, which is riding a dangerous wave of positivity in Flagler as well as Florida.
Cloth face coverings don't prevent the wearer from getting the disease, but studies have proven that they are effective in slowing the spread; the wearer could be carrying the disease without knowing it.
The benefits of mask wearing are clear, Bickel said, saying the scientific support is “overwhelming.”
Just 14 days ago, the positivity rate in Flalger County was 1%, Snyder reported. "Yesterday, it was 10%. ... We're headed in the wrong direction."
Snyder is requesting 14 additional staff members to help with testing and contact tracing, as well as people to answer calls at the DOH.
"We're just ramping up for this continued surge, and then with the fall months approaching, we're concerned about the second wave," Snyder said.
Call 313-4200 to schedule a test at the Daytona State College site.
The Centers for Disease Control recommend mask wearing “in public settings where other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain.”
But that mixed message is counterproductive, according to Bickel. “I don’t know why they’re equivocating on that. … Extra protection is better. … Inside, wear a mask.”
Social distancing is a great deterrent to spreading COVID-19, but it’s not sufficient, Bickel said. Droplets can fly 20 feet when propelled by a sneeze or a vent. It’s best to wear a mask, in addition to the precaution of social distancing.
(Children under age 2 shouldn’t wear masks, and neither should “anyone who has trouble breathing, or is unconscious, incapacitated or otherwise unable to remove the mask without assistance,” the CDC says.)
Bickel identified some reasons why people are opposed to masks: “It’s annoying, they don’t think it looks sexy.” Others feel it’s a violation of their rights. But Bickel says it’s better to require mask wearing — a “minor inconvenience” — than to have to shut down the economy again.
“This is not a time for vanity, for pride," he said. "This is a time for getting the job done. And this is one of the few tools we can employ populationwide that doesn’t have these ramifications like not letting people go back to school. … It’s a no-brainer.”
He said some political leaders may feel they can’t “get too untethered from their support base,” but politics should not be a factor.
“I’m shocked it’s becoming such a politically polarizing thing,” Bickel said. “Do you want to keep enduring all this economic downside?”
