So it’s nearing the end of the week when FFP2 masks became mandatory in Austria. The rollout seems to have been successful, but only barely. All throughout last week there were shortages of FFP2 masks everywhere, with supermarkets and drug stores selling out as soon as their stocks were delivered. I went to several stores every day last week to try to buy masks but came up empty-handed until Saturday. Once the Monday deadline rolled around, some people still hadn’t been able to buy any masks, but the supermarkets have ended up giving them away for free to customers, the same way they did back when the regular non-FFP2 masks became mandatory back in March. So now anyone who’s still waiting to buy a box of masks won’t go bare-faced in the meantime. Compliance with the new rule, so far as I have observed, is 100%.
According to the local news media, the FFP2 masks can be worn for up to four hours, but can be “recharged” a few times by leaving them hanging in the air at room temperature for seven days. So a box of 10 masks should last a long time if you’re economical with your shopping trips and don’t need to commute via public transit too long.
Oh, and in case anyone is curious about the numbers, Austria is currently seeing about 1450 new cases per day, or 10,500 per week, and 45 deaths per day, or 320 per week. These rates are, per capita, about one-third that of the United States. But the US seems to be doing much better at vaccination, with 7.11% of the population there vaccinated compared to Austria’s 2.17%. Austria’s vaccination rate puts it around the middle of the pack among EU countries.
Sorry, that was my term, not the one used in the media. I thought it was OK to use as an informal metaphor, but if you think it’s a bad idea then I’ll avoid this terminology in the future.
I use the dashboard shelf under the windshield (it’s in full, sustained sunlight all day since I have to park outside without any nearby shade) for my masks after I use them for an errand. Then I leave them for at least a few days each and use in rotation. I don’t go out anywhere I need a mask more then several times a week (contactless dropping off over due library books or picking up grocery order).
I have a pair of Ray-Ban Ambermatic sunglasses that I got something like 40 years ago. They darken in sunlight, and lighten in dimmer conditions. A few years ago I put them on the dash of my car to make sure they darkened. They didn’t. They did darken when I wore them outside of the car. Apparently, my Prius’s windshield blocks UV rays.
My Transitions lenses are the same-barely reactive to light through auto glass. In the current climate conditions time and cold temperatures must suffice.
As long as they’re okay with people who are facially defensive against dogs. I’ve never had the big tube up my nose but I’d rather have that than a dog slobbering all over me. If they can just sniff me I’d be fine with that.
And in the Helsinki airport, they are asking people to rub their skin with a wipe, and then bringing the wipe to a dog which is isolated in a booth. Sounds like a good idea.
I just listened to a vet working on training dogs for covid. He was rather hesitant to endorse the Miami Heat plan. So far he doesn’t think enough real world testing has happened and that since we’re not really sure what the dog is actually detecting, we should be careful about using it for individual “yes/no” at the moment. Felt more confident in a "see if there’s covid in this nursing home " type uses at the moment.
First to Demonstrate Clinical Efficacy Against COVID-19 and Both UK and South Africa Variants
Strong efficacy in Phase 3 UK trial with over 50% of cases attributable to the now-predominant UK variant and the remainder attributable to COVID-19 virus
Clinical efficacy demonstrated in Phase 2b South Africa trial with over 90% of sequenced cases attributable to prevalent South Africa escape variant