I read with uneasiness that masks are mandatory inside cinema halls except when consuming food and drink (Cinemas can reopen from July 13, with safety precautions, July 4).

The exception for consuming food and drink gives patrons a licence to go without masks for the duration of the movie. Droplets from coughs or sneezes from asymptomatic, unmasked patrons can linger in the air, posing a transmission risk to other unmasked patrons in the same enclosed space.

A safe seating configuration is not sufficient. To further reduce transmission risk, food and drink in cinema halls must be disallowed and masks be made mandatory for the duration of the movie.

Tan Lee Yew