Public health experts say whether or not you should wear a mask depends on a variety of circumstances, including your health and the local concentration of Covid-19.
With the withdrawal of the federal mask requirement on public transportation, the decision to wear a mask has mainly become a personal one.
Changes in the course and effects of the Covid-19 outbreak, as well as shifts in government messaging, could make the decision more difficult.
Although many parts of the United States no longer compel individuals to wear masks in public places, public-health and infectious-disease specialists believe there are still situations where wearing a mask could be beneficial. Local Covid-19 levels, where you’re going, and your underlying health concerns, as well as the risk to others, all play a role in determining if you should consider masking.
When a virus-carrying particle known as an aerosol is formed when an infected person coughs, speaks, or breathes, good ventilation can help clear the virus from the air, filtering away virus-carrying particles known as aerosols. However, determining how well a space is ventilated is not always straightforward.
Here’s what doctors and public-health professionals have to say about wearing a mask when and where it’s appropriate:
Is there a place where I still have to wear a mask?
Yes, but only in a few places. Due to the withdrawal of the federal law requiring masking on public transportation, wearing a mask is no longer obligatory on a national level in locations such as flights or buses. On April 20, the Justice Department said that it would appeal a federal judge’s decision to overturn a mask mandate for public transportation after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stated that such an order is still required for public health.
Most states and municipal governments have likewise eliminated mask requirements, but officials in Philadelphia and a few universities, including George Washington University, have reinstated them in response to an increase in Covid-19 cases. Masks are still required in many health-care facilities and congregate-care facilities. Mask policies can also be implemented by businesses and organizations.
What has the MTA and other local transit agencies done in response to the recent mask-mandate rulings?
The mask requirement on public transportation in New York remains in effect for the time being, according to a March 2 decision by the state Department of Health. Other systems followed in the footsteps of the federal government. Gov. Phil Murphy of New Jersey announced that masks are no longer needed on NJ Transit.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker of Illinois announced that an executive order requiring masks on public transit would be revised. According to the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, masks no longer needed to be worn on trains in Boston.
How can masks keep Covid-19 at bay?
Covid-19 is largely transmitted via virus-infected respiratory droplets or smaller particles known as aerosols that infected individuals exhale into the air when they cough, sneeze, sing, talk, or breath. Masks can act as a barrier, preventing viruses from being inhaled by an infected individual. They can also help to minimize the quantity of virus that the person inhales.
Throughout the outbreak, laboratory research, modeling, and observational data have shown that wearing a mask can help prevent the virus from spreading, especially when masks are used correctly and widely in a community. According to a CDC analysis, school districts in Arkansas with universal mask requirements had a 23 percent lower incidence of Covid-19 among staff and kids from August to October 2021 than districts without such restrictions.
Masks don’t completely remove the risk of contracting or transmitting the illness, but they can help, according to public-health experts, especially when combined with other preventive measures. “Not everything has to be 100% to be able to still make a difference,” said Gigi Gronvall, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Center for Health Security.
Where should I still use a mask?
In crowded, indoor environments, especially those with poor ventilation, public-health professionals continue to recommend individuals to wear masks. According to infectious-disease experts, the closer individuals are packed together and the longer they stay in contact, the greater the chance of disease spread.
Even though it is no longer necessary, the CDC recommends that people wear masks on indoor public transit such as trains and buses, as well as in hubs such as airports. People should also wear a well-fitting mask for 10 days after being exposed to someone who has Covid-19 and for a full 10 days after testing positive with the virus, according to the CDC.
Wearing a mask in other situations, such as going to the grocery store or the movies, can help lower risk at a low cost, according to public-health experts. Even if they test negative for the Covid-19 virus, people should consider wearing a mask around others or in public if they have symptoms. According to public-health specialists, the test could take a few days to come back positive, or the individual could be infected with a different virus, in which case a mask would likely protect everyone around them as well.
“They work for any virus or bacteria in the same way,” according to Linsey Marr, an engineering professor at Virginia Tech who studies airborne transmission of viruses. “The only thing that really matters is the size of the particle.”
What is the danger of Covid-19 transmission on a flight without masks?
According to Joseph Allen, an associate professor at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health and director of its Healthy Buildings Program, the air is largely safe while planes are in flight because of ventilation and filtering. In an interview before the mandate was rescinded, he observed, “Big picture, we’re overestimating the risk in airplanes.”
However, there is still a risk of transmission, and some studies have suggested that wearing a mask reduces the spread of the virus among air travelers.
“People always point out that on a plane, they have very good ventilation, and that’s true. But it’s not going to help you if your neighbor is coughing,” Dr. Gronvall added.
According to Dr. Gronvall, the air-handling system on airlines is frequently shut down when passengers are coming off the plane, causing individuals to become even more crowded. This is an extremely important time to wear a mask.
What if I’m immunocompromised or have young kids?
People who are immunocompromised or at a higher risk of severe Covid-19 outcomes should use masks more frequently, seriously consider wearing them, or wear higher-quality masks like N95s.
“People who are immunocompromised or people who live with immunocompromised people,” according to Dr. Gronvall, “are having to take on much more dealing with the risk themselves.
“I would try to maximize all of the protective elements.”
Those who spend time with immunocompromised people or who have children under the age of five who are not yet vaccinated should consider masking more frequently, according to infectious-disease experts and doctors. Masks can be worn by children as young as two years old.
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