MASK POLICY AT ISCC IS NOT ONLY INEFFECTIVE, BUT MAY BE HARMFUL DUE TO IMPROPER USE OF CHEAP, LOW QUALITY MASKS MADE IN CHINA
There can be little doubt that masks of any type covering the face and mouth are beneficial against the spread of airborne viral and bacterial contagions, with some masks working better than others. Some masks do little more than obscure the face while allowing snot-rocket globs the size of gummy bears to get through, while others are designed specifically to trap or prevent even virus sized particles from transferring in or out. The masks provided to staff and prisoners at the ISCC are somewhere in between (though leaning towards the snot-rocket end of the spectrum) and are being mischaracterized by prison administrators as medical/surgical quality masks.
ISCC Town Hall Meeting minutes from September 1, 2020, minutes reveal the following conversations and orders from administrators regarding the wearing of masks in the facility:
* MASKS
* All IDOC offenders and staff are mandated to wear medical/surgical masks, which are provided by the IDOC
* Masks can not be ordered from Amazon and shipped to ISCC by family/friends
* If you do not have a medical/surgical mask, please ask your unit staff and they will provide you with one
* The medical/surgical masks can be reused but be sure to rotate them from day to day
* Masks help to prevent the spread of COVID-19, please wear them to protect yourself and the people around you
Sounds pretty good huh? Problem is, the masks provided are not surgical, or even medical grade, but Disposable Protective Masks which come in packaging that clearly warns "Not for medical use". Further, in the instructions on how to operate this finely tuned equipment, the very first line states: "This is a single-use product, please discard after using." Later, the instructions state: "Recommended use for 4 hours or less." These instructions are a far cry from the ISCC administrators' directions to prisoners and staff to reuse the masks, and rotate them from day to day.
While the spread of COVID-19 has increased in Idaho, ISCC administrators continue to tell the prisoners that things are getting back to normal throughout the facility. Although there is no real evidence that this is the case, it is a terrifying possibility - for normal around here is not a good thing either.
