Do Masks Prevent The Spread Of COVID-19? States That Require Face Masks

Do Masks Prevent The Spread Of COVID-19? States That Require Face Masks

Quick Digest and Recent COVID-19 Updates - October 2nd, 2020

As of October 2nd, 2020, President Donald Trump and his wife Melania have tested positive for coronavirus COVID-19. Donald Trump reported that he is experiencing mild symptoms. 
 

Joe Biden and his wife Jill tested negative on October 2nd. In addition, other individuals who attended the presidential debate on Tuesday, such as Congressman Ruben Gallego tested negative for the virus. However, the Cleveland Clinic reported that not all attendees at the presidential debate adhered to wearing a mask. Therefore, there may be some risk that others at the debate contracted coronavirus.  
 

Vice President Mike Pence and Kamala Harris tested negative for COVID-19. Therefore, the vice presidential debates are still scheduled to occur next week at The University of Utah. 
 

This incident highlights the importance of wearing a mask in public places even when you are not experiencing symptoms. On July 16th, Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Director Dr. Robert Redfield recently noted that if everyone could wear a mask right now, the U.S. could have the coronavirus cases under control within the next couple of months.
 

Should I Wear a Mask? 

The CDC strongly recommends that you wear a mask, especially when in contact with people outside of your household, when in public settings, and when indoors. It is now known that COVID-19 can be transmitted from an individual who does not present with symptoms, whereas close to 40% of people with the virus may experience no symptoms. Therefore, it is imperative that you wear a mask, even if you do not feel sick. If you think that you have been exposed to someone with COVID-19 or are experiencing symptoms, do not go out in public other than for medical needs. If you think you may have COVID-19, wear a mask at all times - even around members of your household. 

There are a few groups of people who are exempt from wearing a mask or face covering:

• Any child under the age of two
• Adults with respiratory issues and breathing problems
• Individuals who are unconscious or unable to remove the mask without assistance from others

Do Masks Work In Preventing The Spread Of COVID-19?

Studies show that wearing a mask prevents respiratory droplets from going into the air when you speak, cough, and sneeze. According to an article published by The University of California San Francisco, we generate hundreds of respiratory droplets from just saying a simple phrase; however, a cloth face covering can block almost all of these droplets from reaching the air. According to scientists at Stanford University, if you do not wear a mask, particles from your mouth and nose can travel more than 30 feet in the air and stay alive for more than 24 hours. With the use of a mask, however, viral particles can only travel around 5 feet. 

Additionally, according to a recent publication, Community Use Of Face Masks And COVID-19: Evidence From A Natural Experiment Of State Mandates In The US, mandating the use of face masks in public areas resulted in a 2% decrease in the number of COVID-19 cases in only 3 weeks. While 2% may not seem large at first, that‚s between 230,000 and 450,000 cases of COVID-19 that were potentially avoided.