Wearing a Mask is a Sign of Altruism and Solidarity
A newly published paper outlines why we should wear masks during the COVID-19 Pandemic and how our thinking about masks has changed in the past couple of months.
| Before | Now |
| Healthy individuals do not need to wear masks. | Everybody should wear a mask. COVID-19 can be spread by you, even if you are asymptomatic. Masks protect others from your respiratory droplets. |
| There is a shortage of masks. Masks should be reserved for health-care workers. | In order to control the infection source, cloth masks are adequate, especially if everyone wears a mask. Cloth masks can be easily manufactured or made at home and reused after washing. |
| Mask wearing could engender a false sense of security in relation to other methods of infection control such as social distancing and handwashing. | There is no evidence that individuals who wear masks forego other methods of infection control. |