Cloth masks are as effective as ever in the face of new variants of coronovirus, as the transmission method remains the same, the WHO said on Friday, which does not plan to change its recommendations.

“Fabric masks, non-surgical, can be used by everyone under the age of 60 who do not have special health problems,” said the person in charge of managing the epidemic at the World Health Organization. Health, Maria Van Kerkhov.

“Masks should be worn in areas where the virus is spreading, when people are crowded together and it is impossible to stand at least meters away from each other as well as in poorly or poorly ventilated rooms. “, He added to a press. the seminar.

Germany and Austria have only installed medical masks (surgical or FFP2) in shops and transportation.

The French government, for its part, is asking not to use some special fabric masks, including homegrown ones, considering insufficient filtering in the event of the emergence of new, more infectious variants of coronovirus. Huh.

Maria Van Kerkhov said “countries are free to take the measures they necessarily require”.

However, even with such variants, which may be more contagious, “we have no indication to suggest that the mode of transmission would have changed”, argued the person in charge of managing the epidemic at WHO.

Therefore, he explained, in relation to the recommendations in force, “we do not intend to revise them at this level”.