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But, Mackie said, he’s still not convinced he has the evidence to order masking up here. We have a low caseload. There were no new cases reported Tuesday, and no new deaths for more than four weeks. We have worked hard to keep the virus at bay.

And even in places like Toronto, where there was more disease, “the rates are really far off the peaks.”

“What people want, obviously, is a black-and-white, yes-or-no answer and that simply is not the world we are living in,” he said.

“Essentially, we are in the art of public health here, right now. There isn’t a formula to tell you what the right answer is,” he said.

Could he be convinced? Sure, he said, if the data supported it. “It doesn’t change my opinion right now about the use of the Health Protection Promotion Act, but there are other tools.”

That could be city council, he said. Bring in the punting team.

“There’s definitely a window of opportunity for city council, if they believe that it’s right for their community, to take leadership here,” Mackie said. “From a health perspective, there wouldn’t be a downside, and could potentially be an upside to having a masking bylaw.”