Universal mask-wearing in classrooms for those aged eight and over is expected to cut the number of deaths between July and October by 5 to 10 per cent,according to the modelling.
Victoria’s Chief Health Officer,Brett Sutton,said that while the expectation of perfect compliance might be overly optimistic,“mask-wearing in schools is an intervention that we know can make a difference”.
“If we make an assumption of 100 per cent mask-wearing in schools,then we can drop those new cases by around 15 per cent … and deaths by 5 to 10 per cent,” Sutton said.
“That’s a significant proportion in modelling,but it’s up to us how much we make that happen in the real world.”
Acting chief health officer Ben Cowie advised Victorian Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas in early July that mask-wearing should again be made mandatory in schools for those in grade three and above.
The recommendation wasn’t adopted by the state and the concept has been criticised by some for asking too much of the young,who are generally at the lowest risk of falling very ill from COVID-19.Instead,students have been encouraged to wear a mask.