NOTE: This article is provided free of charge for all to read by The Washington Post.
As part of a push for stronger messaging, the agency acknowledged masks work both as ‘source control and personal protection’
When the White House coronavirus task force first recommended mask-wearing April 3, officials emphasized that this was not about you. It was about others. Your mom, dad, other family members. Friends. The older woman who always smiles at you at the grocery store, the immunocompromised dad coaching your kid’s basketball team.
Now, a growing body of science suggests that by wearing a mask to prevent spreading the virus, you may be protecting yourself, too. It is further evidence that knowledge about masks, and their benefits, continues to evolve — much as does understanding of the pandemic more broadly.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said for the first time, writing in a scientific bulletin posted to its website this week that “the benefit of masking is derived from the combination of source control and personal protection for the mask wearer.” Masks are neither completely selfless nor selfish — they help everyone. Continue reading.