When Did You Last Wash Your Mask?

Wear your mask. Wash your hands. Don’t hug grandma or you might kill her.

There is a lot we don’t know about Coronavirus, however, some interesting research has been published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In July 2020, the CDC released a report titled Community and Close Contact Exposures Associated with COVID-19 Among Symptomatic Adults ≥18 Years in 11 Outpatient Health Care Facilities. While that does sound like a mouthful, it held some interesting information concerning mask usage and COVID-19.

Take a look at the chart below:

Source: Page 4 of 7 CDC report

While this may look a bit confusing, it holds some key information. In a sample of 154 case patients taken between July 1st through the 29th, 108 positive testing patients reported that they always wore a mask. 22 reported that they often wore a mask.

As someone who only wears a mask to avoid getting a ticket, this was some very interesting information. However, it also raised a very important question. Why are so many people who wear a mask contracting COVID?