MONTREAL Quebec s deaf community is celebrating the arrival of the first mask with a transparent window over the mouth that meets Health Canada requiremements. “It s a great victory,” said Audition Quebec president Jeanne Choquette. Choquette said the province s mask mandate, which was first implemented in July, created “a lot of distress” among the hearing impaired. “We read lips. We need to see the mouth,” she said. Choquette said the single-use Humask-Pro Vision was “eagerly awaited” in the health, education and early childhood centre networks. The mask, which is manufactured in the Quebec town of Louiseville, will be 15 to 20 per cent more expensive than comparable masks, according to Luc Girard, a partner at Entreprise Premont.
Eyes may be called the window to the soul, but a Quebec manufacturer is adding a window of understanding to surgical masks for the hard of hearing. The masks are disposable and the motivation came from close to home.