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Opinion | “This has become a political issue when really it is a public health crisis.” | Richard Ransom

“Thanks to mask mandates, we just had the best year in decades for flu cases as well as people catching a cold, not to mention COVID cases fell dramatically.”

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — In Wednesday’s Ransom Note: I don't have a good feeling about where we're headed concerning face masks, and I honestly don't understand why it's such a hot button issue.

People seriously claim masks don't work despite ample evidence right in front of us. Thanks to mask mandates, we just had the best year in decades for flu cases as well as people catching a cold, not to mention COVID cases fell dramatically. Still others resist masks because they say it's the government telling them what to do. You mean the same government which tells us to stop at red lights and obey speed limits for our safety?

Why are we so resistant to trusting our doctors? You can't find one, just one, who says masks don't work. Besides, if we don't want another shutdown, masks are an easy, painless, and cheap way to put an end to all of this. But then, so is getting vaccinated.

I’ll leave you with the words of Dr. Sara Cross, Regional One's infectious disease chief who was on Governor Lee's Coronavirus Task Force, which she says hasn't met since March. “This has become a political issue when really it is a public health crisis, and that's what we need to make it.”

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