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With COVID-19 claiming nearly 7,000 lives across the US already, the CDC is expected to release new guidelines on facial protection. Will this mean all Americans should wear masks from next week onwards?
Already on Tuesday President Donald Trump signalled that he was open to the idea of Americans wearing facial protection, as advised by majority of his coronavirus task force. However, there is no formal order of that kind as of now, not even a guideline. Trump suggested the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) would be releasing new guidelines soon.
So, should you wear masks or not? Like in many countries, in the US the focus at this stage is to first provide medical personell with professional equipment, so it's advised that individuals not dealing with patients should not stock on N95 equipment and reduce availibility for professionals. Most of us don't need medical grade protection at the end of the day.
However, you may consider wearing facial protection of some kind, especially if you think you may have contracted the virus already. In such cases it's of great importance to block any droplets and particles one might emit during speech and breathing.
Donald Trump suggested a scarf would work even better than medical masks. While that is simply not true as a blanket statement (some scarves might be, but most are not better), the novel coronavirus enters our organisms through our mouth, nose and eyes.
