Sure, 50-80% would be great if that’s the average case. But it’s not, that’s the best case, and apples if the mask:
is fresh
fits properly
is high quality
But if you’re wearing a mask all day, it’s not going to be fresh, will likely not fit properly the whole time, and probably not be very high quality. Most of the masks I saw at the height of COVID were crappy single-layer cloth masks with effectiveness in the single digits.
So your average mask is probably 5-25% effective on net if worn all day.
That’s why I say we shouldn’t be wearing masks all day, we should only wear them when it’s important. That way, people are more likely to use a fresh mask and ensure it fits properly. I can put up with wearing a high quality mask for a few hours or days, but if you ask me to do that every single day, I’m going to get lazy, and lazy reduces effectiveness.
At the height of COVID, medical experts wanted to slow the spread to preserve hospital capacity, so even single digit effectiveness was fine. But these days, there’s not much point to such low numbers of effectiveness, so mask-wearing shouldn’t be an everyday thing, but instead something you do when it’s especially important. Make it a normal thing, just not a routine.
Sure, 50-80% would be great if that’s the average case. But it’s not, that’s the best case, and apples if the mask:
But if you’re wearing a mask all day, it’s not going to be fresh, will likely not fit properly the whole time, and probably not be very high quality. Most of the masks I saw at the height of COVID were crappy single-layer cloth masks with effectiveness in the single digits.
So your average mask is probably 5-25% effective on net if worn all day.
That’s why I say we shouldn’t be wearing masks all day, we should only wear them when it’s important. That way, people are more likely to use a fresh mask and ensure it fits properly. I can put up with wearing a high quality mask for a few hours or days, but if you ask me to do that every single day, I’m going to get lazy, and lazy reduces effectiveness.
At the height of COVID, medical experts wanted to slow the spread to preserve hospital capacity, so even single digit effectiveness was fine. But these days, there’s not much point to such low numbers of effectiveness, so mask-wearing shouldn’t be an everyday thing, but instead something you do when it’s especially important. Make it a normal thing, just not a routine.