The Pew Research Center released findings of a survey on mask wearing in the United States. Who could have guessed that wearing a mask to prevent illness would be made into a political issue?
In answer to the question, “In the past month, how often, if ever, have you worn a mask or face covering when in stores or other businesses?” where the respondent could answer “All or most of the time, Some of the time, Hardly ever, Never, Have not gone to these type of places or No answer,” they found some interesting differences.
First, they found that Democrats and those who lean toward Democratic ideology were more likely to wear a mask in the past month (76%) than Republicans and those who lean toward Republican ideology(53%).
They also found an education gap. Those with a college degree (76%) were more likely than those without one (60%) to wear a mask.
Age was also a factor. Older adults over 65 were most likely to have worn masks (74%) versus all younger age groups: 50-65 (66%) and 61% and 62% for 30-40 year olds and 18-30 year olds respectively. 1
The CDC recommendation is clear: “CDC recommends that people wear cloth face coverings in public settings when around people outside of their household, especially when other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain.” 2 As states have been re-opening, and the US is seeing increasing cases of COVID-19, you would think it would be a no-brainer. Wearing a mask saves lives!
References
1https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/06/23/most-americans-say-they-regularly-wore-a-mask-in-stores-in-the-past-month-fewer-see-others-doing-it/
2https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/cloth-face-cover-guidance.html
Image by Marco Verch https://www.flickr.com/photos/30478819@N08/49567575502
