Masks protect others, not the one wearing the mask. I have heard it argued that wearing a mask infringes on one’s rights. You do not have a right to infect others. People can be asymptotic and spread the virus unknowingly. Masks help prevent the spread of the disease.
In a paper, “The Science Behind why Masks Limit COVID-19 Spread #Masks4All” (4/13/2020), Professor Trisha Greenhalgh OBE and Jeremy Howard reported that scientists have looked at wearing a mask from the physics of droplets and aerosols, they have examined the material of face masks, and they have done mathematics of transmission of virus and Covid-19. They concluded: “Near-universal adoption of non-medical masks in public (in conjunction with other measures like test & trace) can reduce effective-R below 1.0 and stop the community spread of the virus.”
The Washington Post stated that there are: “34 scientific papers indicating basic masks can be effective in reducing virus transmission in public — and not a single paper that shows clear evidence that they cannot.”
Professor Abaluck et al. (2020) found that “the benefits of each additional cloth mask worn by the public are conservatively in the $3,000-$6,000 range due to their impact in slowing the spread of the virus.”
As a matter of civic responsibility to your family, your friends, your neighbors, and your community, you should wear a mask in public. Wearing a mask helps to stop the spread of the virus, saves lives, and restores our economy.
