Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
CDC Says Cloth Masks Don't Protect Against Covid As Much As N95s, KN95s
The New York Times: Cloth Masks Do Not Protect Against Virus As Effectively As Others, C.D.C. Says
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday clarified its stance on various kinds of masks, acknowledging that the cloth masks frequently worn by Americans do not offer as much protection as surgical masks or respirators. While this disparity is widely known to the general public, the update marks the first time the C.D.C. has explicitly addressed the differences. The agency’s website also no longer refers to a shortage of respirators. (Mandavilli, 1/14)
Slate: CDC Updates Guidelines To Make Clear Cloth Masks Offer Least Protection Against COVID
“Loosely woven cloth products provide the least protection, layered finely woven products offer more protection, well-fitting disposable surgical masks and KN95s offer even more protection, and well-fitting NIOSH-approved respirators (including N95s) offer the highest level of protection,” the CDC said. Although there had previously been concern about shortages of N95s and KN95s for healthcare workers that’s no longer the case and people can now wear them without worry. When wearing a higher-quality mask isn’t possible, the CDC recommends a disposable mask underneath a cloth mask. Details aside, the CDC still wants to send the message “that any mask is better than no mask,” as Kristen Nordlund, a CDC spokeswoman, said. (Politi, 1/15)
Newsweek: Do Cloth Masks Work Against COVID? New CDC Mask Guidelines Explained
While some studies have shown that cloth masks are able to reduce the number of oral contaminants spread by people, not all viruses and bacteria are the same size, and neither are all cloth masks. One study from February 2021 set out to compare how well cloth face masks blocked aerosol particles from hitting a collection chamber and found that their filtration efficiencies varied massively from as low as 1.4 percent to 98 percent. (Browne, 1/17)
Also —
CNN: Virginia's New GOP Governor Meets Resistance From Some School Districts Planning To Keep Mask Requirements
Newly inaugurated Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin has been in office for mere days, but the Republican is already rolling back the priorities of his Democratic predecessors and running into opposition from counties he lost months earlier, specifically on the hot-button issue of mask requirements in schools. The tension over school mask requirements echoes the way pandemic-related measures have become political touchpoints over the past two years, with Youngkin campaigning last fall in no small part on parents' frustrations with remote learning and seizing on what they perceived as lack of control over their kids' schooling. (Merica and McKend, 1/17)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee Health Department Distributes 1 Million N95 Masks In A Week
The Milwaukee Health Department announced Friday evening that all N95 masks supplied to them have been distributed to the public. Acting Mayor Cavalier Johnson announced last week that the city had received 500,000 N95 masks from the state and would begin distributing the masks last Saturday. The health department distributed the 500,000 masks in three days and announced they would distribute 500,000 more beginning Thursday. Demand was high for the masks, just as demand was high for testing. The city's health department finished distributing the second round of masks by 4 p.m. Friday. (Bentley, 1/14)
