X-Files
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"The science is clear: Masks worked, but vaccinated people don’t need them now
I believe in masks, but it’s time to move toward normalcy in the United States
When the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention called for universal mask-wearing to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in April 2020, much of America took heed. We wore masks at work and while jogging. We put face coverings on our children at the playground. And by doing so, we helped slow the spread of a disease that has taken the lives of more than 3.4 million people globally, including more than 580,000 in the United States.
Now, it’s time for us to listen to the CDC again. In declaring last week that most vaccinated people don’t need to wear masks, the agency leaned on solid science that shows the vaccines are working — not only to protect the person who got the shot, but also the people around them. Embracing this new guidance is an important step that will help move our country toward a normality that we’ve all worked hard to bring back.
I am keenly aware of the protective value of masks. I was among the first to publish a scientific brief on the importance of universal face masking for the U.S. public. Since then, I have published many papers with others promoting masks as a way to not only slow the spread of the virus but potentially even reduce the amount of virus the wearer is exposed to and reduce the severity of disease if contracted. Based in part on our work, the CDC revised its guidance in November to conclude that masks don’t just protect others but also protect the person wearing them. Our research also contributed to CDC guidelines early this year that the fit and filtration abilities of the mask make a difference in blocking viral particles, leading many Americans to start double-masking.
So, I am a believer in the power of masks. But the vaccines are even more powerful, according to a growing body of research — not just in clinical trials but in the real world. Study after study has demonstrated that they prevent severe disease and infection at astounding rates. Vaccines prevented covid-19 hospitalization among adults 65 and older by 94 percent, prevented symptomatic infection among health-care workers in Israel by 97 percent and blocked severe covid-19 disease by 97.4 percent in Qatar, even when the majority of circulating virus was from variants of concern, according to studies cited by the CDC the day they released their new mask guidance. Studies also found that serious breakthrough infections among vaccinated individuals are extremely rare. Of over 115 million Americans vaccinated, only 0.0009 percent have had severe covid-19 after vaccination despite the virus continuing to circulate in their communities. Vaccines truly defang the virus."
[article continued in next post]
I believe in masks, but it’s time to move toward normalcy in the United States
When the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention called for universal mask-wearing to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in April 2020, much of America took heed. We wore masks at work and while jogging. We put face coverings on our children at the playground. And by doing so, we helped slow the spread of a disease that has taken the lives of more than 3.4 million people globally, including more than 580,000 in the United States.
Now, it’s time for us to listen to the CDC again. In declaring last week that most vaccinated people don’t need to wear masks, the agency leaned on solid science that shows the vaccines are working — not only to protect the person who got the shot, but also the people around them. Embracing this new guidance is an important step that will help move our country toward a normality that we’ve all worked hard to bring back.
I am keenly aware of the protective value of masks. I was among the first to publish a scientific brief on the importance of universal face masking for the U.S. public. Since then, I have published many papers with others promoting masks as a way to not only slow the spread of the virus but potentially even reduce the amount of virus the wearer is exposed to and reduce the severity of disease if contracted. Based in part on our work, the CDC revised its guidance in November to conclude that masks don’t just protect others but also protect the person wearing them. Our research also contributed to CDC guidelines early this year that the fit and filtration abilities of the mask make a difference in blocking viral particles, leading many Americans to start double-masking.
So, I am a believer in the power of masks. But the vaccines are even more powerful, according to a growing body of research — not just in clinical trials but in the real world. Study after study has demonstrated that they prevent severe disease and infection at astounding rates. Vaccines prevented covid-19 hospitalization among adults 65 and older by 94 percent, prevented symptomatic infection among health-care workers in Israel by 97 percent and blocked severe covid-19 disease by 97.4 percent in Qatar, even when the majority of circulating virus was from variants of concern, according to studies cited by the CDC the day they released their new mask guidance. Studies also found that serious breakthrough infections among vaccinated individuals are extremely rare. Of over 115 million Americans vaccinated, only 0.0009 percent have had severe covid-19 after vaccination despite the virus continuing to circulate in their communities. Vaccines truly defang the virus."
[article continued in next post]
