Do Masks Work? Yes. No. Maybe.

I have some expertise in this area, so let me clear up some misconceptions. All statements saying "masks" don't work are advancing from a false premise, so let me clear that up first. Here it is:

The purpose of the masks people were asked to wear was NOT to afford protection to the wearer.

This is the biggest and most salient point that must be grasped first. The purpose of the mask was to minimize aerosol dissemination, from potentially infected people, and protect others from becoming infected. The surgical masks people were asked to wear are highly effective in doing so. Masks fitted with exhalation valves, less so. To protect a wearer from an inhalation hazard, you would need a sealing mask... a half or full face respirator with filtration. That is not the purpose of the masks the general public was asked to wear.

One aspect of the COVID virus that made it so effective was its benign nature. How people could carry and spread the virus asymptomatically. And those most likely to be asymptomatic spreaders - those that did not believe COVID was a threat or a problem, those that would eventually refuse vaccination, those that were tearing masks off people that DID wear them... are those that refused to wear a masks in public settings. This was the predictable failure.

The failing was in culture and understanding. Not the mask. If someone doesn't know how to drive a car, or crashes a car on purpose, you can't then say the car was defective and didn't work. As for culture, the premise that people should have to make a small sacrifice or experience a bit of discomfort to afford a benefit to others while receiving no benefit themselves will, in my opinion, not work in our current culture, or maybe any culture. It certainly works better in Asian cultures.

The problem is not with the masks that will do exactly what they are designed to do.

Good article LTC Kevin B..

While politics and media spoon feed people into believing that "the other side is completely wrong and the masks ___________ ('work' or 'don't work')" the science is doing what the science is supposed to do - keep exploring because when there is a large body of evidence that contradict your conclusions, the body of evidence has to be examined and the conclusions have to be reconsidered using that evidence.

For those who are health compromised and who display insufficient immune responses it can be a life saver.
Rich