WHO warns masks are no ‘silver bullet’ for ending pandemic

The World Health Organization warned Monday that wearing masks alone would not be enough to defeat the global coronavirus pandemic, which has now killed more than 70,000 people.

The World Health Organization warned Monday that wearing masks alone would not be enough to defeat the global coronavirus pandemic, which has now killed more than 70,000 people.

Members of staff collect surgical masks from a production line in a factory in Taoyuan, Taiwan April 6, 2020. (Reuters photo)

“Masks should only ever be used as part of a comprehensive package of interventions. There is no black or white answer, and no silver bullet. Masks alone cannot stop the Covid-19 pandemic,” WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a virtual news conference.