More than five months into the Covid-19 pandemic, the evidence for masks keeps getting stronger.
One study in Germany found that mask mandates reduced the growth of infections by about 40 percent. Another estimated that mask rules in 15 US states and Washington, DC, may have prevented as many as 230,000 to 450,000 cases. Meanwhile, evidence suggests protests against police brutality and racism in many cities this summer did not lead to big spikes in case counts, which some attribute to the fact that the demonstrations were outdoors and many participants were masked.
For all these reasons and more, many public health experts have been encouraging Americans to wear masks. When it comes to Covid-19, “the best treatment is prevention, and there are very good data to show how effective masks are,” Murtaza Akhter, an ER doctor in Phoenix and professor at the University of Arizona College of Medicine, told Vox.
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