This article, as the title suggests, is about new corona infections and masks.
As you all know, the status of new coronavirus infection ("corona") has changed under the Infectious Disease Control Law.
This has been reported in many media outlets, so it is not for me to say now, but a brief summary of what you should keep in mind in your daily life would be as follows
- Corona's status under the Infectious Disease Control Law has been changed from "new influenza and other infectious diseases (equivalent to category 2)" to "category 5" infectious diseases as of May 8, 2023.
- From a system of various requests and involvement by the government based on the law, to respecting the independent choice of the individual.
To begin with, as of March 13, about two months prior to May 8, the government had announced a policy of leaving the wearing of masks to individual judgment. Since that day, I have consciously started to remove my mask depending on the situation.
(My thoughts as we approach March 13th,It is written here.(Read it if you like.)
Anyway, I had been wearing a mask for three whole years, and I knew that it would be difficult for me to remove it all at once. I felt the need to make a very conscious effort to create opportunities to remove it and get myself used to a situation where I was not wearing a mask.
And finally, officially, on May 8, when Corona changed to Class 5.
It is not surprising to see a dramatic increase in the number of people taking off their masks in the fullness of time. Of course, since May 8, there has been an increase in the number of people removing their masks, both indoors and outdoors.
However, when I observe people walking around town, quite a few of them are walking around wearing masks, even though they are outdoors where it is not "dense" at all. Why don't they take them off when there is so much distance between them and other people? I, for example, wonder why they don't take off their masks when they are so close to people.
Do you really not want to be infected with corona? No, I don't want to be infected with corona either. There are still many unknowns about the aftereffects of this disease, and it is better not to be infected. That is a matter of course.
But anyway, that's why it changed to "category 5". Until now, it was "Class 2," the second scariest disease from the top in the classification of the Infectious Disease Control Law. But now it is classified as "Class 5," the same as seasonal influenza.
I am tempted to ask if everyone has a proper understanding of this.
What the state is saying now, which I would translate in layman's terms, would be something like the following.
I would like to thank you all for your hard work. For the past three years, the government has been restricting your freedom and rights by telling you to do this or that. But as of May 7, that will end once and for all. Because there is no longer any basis for the state to restrict the rights of its citizens. You will now return to your normal lives as you once knew them.
I don't think this personal translation, even though it contains a bit of personal hope, is not so wrong.
How much I can emphasize is that coronas are now classified the same as seasonal influenza.In other words, now is pre-2019 and we can act as if we are having an unseasonal flu epidemic. That is how I understand it.
I was struck the other day on a TV program by an internist who is an expert on infectious diseases, who said something along these lines.
If people were in the habit of wearing masks when the flu was going around before the corona epidemic, they should still be wearing masks now. But those who, prior to the corona, were not in the habit of wearing masks when the flu was prevalent, should just take them off again."
I was deeply convinced that this is indeed a clear and rational concept that can be applied by many people.
The government has also said that it will continue to recommend the wearing of masks when visiting medical facilities, elderly care facilities, or on crowded trains and buses, although it will leave the wearing of masks to the discretion of the individual.
But the fact that the elderly and those with underlying diseases are in the high-risk group is also changing this to "as a category 5 disease," isn't it?
The elderly generally do not have as strong an immune system as younger people. Therefore, the risk of serious illness is high, not only from coronas, but from all kinds of infectious diseases.
The elderly, pregnant women, and people with underlying medical conditions are more likely to become seriously ill if infected with influenza, so they should be careful.
That is what I understand at this point in time to be the meaning of Corona's change from a Class 2 to a Class 5.
I am a person who originally (pre-2019) only wore masks when I was coughing myself, so I am slowly returning to a mask-free lifestyle, as my internist mentioned above.
This is what "getting back to normal" means. Of course, those who want to wear a mask can do so. This is also their freedom and right.
Since the basic principle is to respect the individual's independent choice, it is also a big deal to warn someone "why don't you take off your mask".
I also believe that even in crowded trains and buses, where the government recommends the wearing of masks, we should not say anything that would force people to wear masks.
This is because coronas have already become a disease to be feared to the same degree as seasonal influenza.
Personally reminding others to wear masks on crowded trains and buses would be the same as saying this, analogously to pre-2019.
The world is going through a flu epidemic right now. You may be infected with the flu virus right now and in the incubation period before you develop the disease. If so, you are spreading the virus without your knowledge. So you should wear a mask right now to protect those around you from infection!" So he is preaching. What do you think of this? It is a little strange, isn't it?
As such, I will continue to live my life without a mask, depending on the occasion.
When it comes time to take off the mask, this is natural, but it feels good. It really feels invigorating. I remember that this is what it was like to feel the wind of nature.
And I realize once again how abnormal the past three years have been. I don't want to force others to do so, but those who are in good health and can take off their masks should do so actively. I agree with you wholeheartedly.