Reply to Is there a "post-truth" majority in the US?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]The gold standard Cochrane meta analysis of over 78 rigorous studies showed that mask mandates don’t work.  “The review’s authors found “little to no” evidence that masking at the population level reduced COVID infections, concluding that there is “uncertainty about the effects of face masks.” That result held when the researchers compared surgical masks with N95 masks, and when they compared surgical masks with nothing.” (Tayag)

If you haven’t been following the science, then maybe just sit this discussion out.[/quote]

The Cochrane study was only "gold standard" in terms of limiting itself to randomized controlled trials, it did not not capture real-world effectiveness as well as observational studies, and beyond that it has other flaws, for example it included pre-COVID studies of influenza, which has different transmission dynamics than COVID.  However even that said, the Cochrane review nonetheless still concluded that there was "low to moderate certainty" evidence that masks provide a small reduction in viral respiratory infections based on RCTs - which contradicts your suggestion that masks were totally ineffective and worthless.  Even the Cochrane study can't back that claim up.

There are links above to several other meta-analyses which were not as constrained and flawed as the Cochrane study, which found that effectiveness of masks can be influenced by the timing of implementation, adherence rates, and public compliance. During the COVID-19 pandemic, widespread and consistent mask usage combined with other measures (social distancing, hand hygiene) did in fact play a crucial role.

Studies linked earlier in this thread specifically focused on COVID-19 (not influenza as in the Cochrane study) have shown that masks, particularly in combination with other measures, [i]can[/i] in fact significantly reduce transmission. For instance, the Lancet systematic review and meta-analysis demonstrated that face masks could result in a large reduction in infection risk.  Likewise, real-world data from Kansas and Germany indicated that mask mandates and usage correlated with reduced infection rates and growth.  Weird that you would want to disregard European studies (Germany) while falsely claiming we are the ones disregarding European studies.
[/quote]

Then why, as someone who is on heavy immunosuppressants, does my doctor instruct me to wear an N95 mask on an airplane? And also why don’t I get Covid on the plane like my DH or kid who don’t wear masks? Why do doctors and nurses wear masks when working? [/quote]

I’m not the PP but I assume one of the issues is whether the masks fit you and you wear them correctly.

There is a huge difference between whether an N95 mask is effective individually in specific situations and whether mask mandates are effective at preventing disease spread across a population. [/quote]

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