Why Are There So Many Mixed Messages About Wearing Face Masks?
From the start of the pandemic, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has urged members of the public to avoid wearing masks if they are not sick, which seemed simple enough. “Facmasks may be in short supply and they should be saved for caregivers,” CDC guidance says—in other words, if you are not a health care worker, you should only wear one if you are sick or caring for someone who is sick and can’t wear a mask themselves.
But as the crisis has continued to unfold, messaging about masks—whether surgical, N95 or homemade—has become mixed and confusing. The CDC has said one thing about masks, while politicians in some U.S. states or cities most impacted by the outbreak have said another, some, for example, encouraging the use of homemade masks. The mayors of Los Angeles and New York City have already started to urge the public to use non-medical masks, including scarves or bandanas. The city of Laredo, Texas, has even passed a rule to fine anyone in public for not covering their faces.
Some medical experts feel a mask, even a homemade one, couldn’t hurt, while others feel that masks could give people a false sense of protection. The CDC may even be changing its guidance on the use of masks any day now, according to the Associated Press. But one thing is certain, TIME senior health reporter Mandy Oaklander has learned: the science is simply not definitive enough to know for sure how effective a mask really is.
In a March 26 interview with NBA star Steph Curry, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said, “When we say you don’t need to wear a mask, what we’re really saying is make sure you prioritize it first to the people who need the mask. In a perfect world, if you had all the masks you wanted, then somebody walking in the street with a mask doesn’t bother me—you can get some degree of protection.”
Amidst all the conflicting messages—plus the surge of crafty people on the internet providing How-To guides to make your own homemade mask—Oaklander provides some answers on what the science says about covering your face. “If you want to wear a mask, go for it,” one expert told her. “But just be mindful of what the possible benefits are and what the possible limitations are. And be realistic.”
The global case count of COVID-19 surpassed 1 million on Thursday evening, and there have been more than 50,000 deaths related to the virus around the world.
In the U.K., Buckingham Palace announced earlier today that Queen Elizabeth II has recorded a rare public address that will be broadcast on Sunday and will be about the coronavirus.
Vendors have started to return to the streets of Wuhan as restrictions there ease up, according to the AP. The entire country is preparing to coordinate a moment of silence on Saturday in honor of those who died of the virus. Flags will also be lowered at half-mast.
The Situation in the U.S.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said this morning that he will be utilizing an executive order to take ventilators and personal protective equipment from private hospitals and companies that aren’t using them. He also criticized the way states have been forced to bid against each other, competing for necessary equipment. Cuomo has warned that New York, where more than 1,500 people have died, could run out of life-saving ventilators within days.
The U.S. economy continues to struggle. The federal government announced earlier today that employers cut 701,000 jobs in the month of March, the first drop in roughly 10 years. According to the Associated Press, the coming months are likely to be even bleaker. Economists predict that unemployment could reach up to 15% by the time the next jobs report comes out in early May, according to the AP.
The U.S. Navy has also removed Capt. Brett Crozier from his position after he raised the alarm of a COVID-19 outbreak aboard a Navy aircraft carrier. In videos shared on social media, hundreds of servicemen could be seen cheering on Crozier in a sendoff as he exited the ship on Thursday, which is docked in Guam.
All numbers are from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering, and are accurate as of April 2, 8 PM eastern time. To see larger, interactive versions of these maps and charts, click here.
WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD KNOW
How Long Will It Take For Each State to ‘Flatten the Curve’?
Given the size of the U.S., the construct of “flattening the curve” also holds true for states the same way it does for individual countries. TIME has crunched the numbers, and here are the projections for the state that you live in. Read more here.
Pride Goes Online
So far, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to the cancelation of more than 200 LGBTQ Pride events worldwide. But that is not deterring organizers who are finding creative ways to unite the LGBTQ community online. Read more here.
Rohingya Refugees Brace For COVID-19
Author Mayuu Ali, who is himself a Rohingya refugee living at camp in Bangladesh, writes for TIME about bracing for another potentially devastating threat—an outbreak of coronavirus. “Our situation is already desperate. And that is before the virus sweeps through the camps,” he writes. Read more here.
Can You Be Re-Infected After Recovering from COVID-19?
Headlines in Asia reported that some patients who seemingly recovered have been readmitted to hospitals after testing positive for the virus again. But whether a person can actually be infected so soon after recovery is complicated, writes TIME reporter HIllary Leung from Hong Kong. Read more here.
Pro Tip: Don’t Bring Your Work Mess Home With You
If your work life was already a mess, as it is for many of us, then uprooting from the office to work from home can make it even messier, writes Scott Sonenshein, co-author with Marie Kondo of Joy at Work. Read more here.
Ford Motor Company Steps Up to Build Medical Equipment—Again
When a company has been around for as long as Ford has, it has survived through several American crises. Several companies are now manufacturing much needed ventilators, but Ford has done this before. Read more here.
Thanks for reading. We hope you find the Coronavirus Brief newsletter to be a helpful tool to navigate this very complex situation, and welcome feedback at coronavirus.brief@time.com.
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