New CDC Recommendation to Double Mask

CDC recommends that people wear masks in public setting, at events and gatherings, and anywhere they will be around other people. Effective February 2, 2021, masks are required on planes, buses, trains, and other forms of public transportation traveling into, within, or out of the United States and in U.S. transportation hubs such as airports and stations.

Researchers further determined that when a person wears two masks properly, and the people around them do the same, the risk of transmitting infectious aerosols can be reduced by as much as 95%.

The other method the CDC found that "substantially improved source control and reduced wearer exposure to the virus was knotting the ear loops of a single surgical mask and then tucking in and flattening the extra material close to the face.”

Last month, Dr. Anthony Fauci, one of the country's top infectious disease specialists, said that double-masking being more effective "just makes common sense." In addition to wearing proper face coverings, the CDC findings affirm that physical distancing, avoiding crowds and poorly ventilated indoor spaces, and good hand hygiene remains critically important as well. According to experiments performed by the CDC, a three-ply surgical mask blocked 42% of particles from a simulated cough, and a three-ply cloth mask blocked 44 percent%. Yet, when used in unison (surgical mask and cloth mask), 92% of particles were blocked.

Cdc.gov