Delta variant: Which masks can stop it?

The delta variant of the new coronavirus continues to increase across the country – and it looks like your normal fabric face covers aren’t cutting it anymore.

Which masks should not be worn?

It seems that the experts are speaking out against bandanas, cloth masks and gaiters when it comes to the delta variant.

Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, said CNN this week, people are expected to switch from their cloth masks and bandanas to more durable masks – like the N95s and K-N95s.

• “We need to talk about better masking. We need to talk about the N-95 respirators, which would do a lot for people who are not yet vaccinated or who have not been infected before, ”Osterholm said. CNN. “Protect them as well as prevent others who might become infected after being vaccinated from expiring the virus.”

Osterholm said he had issues with the way masking went in the United States because people didn’t take the best masks – like the N95s – as seriously as cloth masks, according to The Hill.

• “You know, I wish we could get rid of the term masking because, in fact, it implies that whatever you put in front of your face is working, and if I could just add a nuance to what hopefully doesn’t. ‘adds no more confusion, is we now know that many facial tissue blankets that people wear are not very effective at reducing inward or outward movement of viruses,’ said Osterholm .

Likewise, former Food and Drug Administration commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb said on CBS’s “Face the Nation” in July that we may also be considering N95 or K-N95 masks.

• “So it’s not more airborne and it’s not more likely to be permeable to a mask. So a mask can still come in handy, ”Gottlieb said on“ Face the Nation ”on Sunday. “I think, however, that if you are considering wearing a mask, the quality of the mask matters. So if you can get your hands on a KN95 mask or an N95 mask, it will give you a lot more protection. “

Do you have to wear a mask if you are fully vaccinated?

Dr Todd Vento, infectious disease physician at Intermountain Healthcare, told reporters on Thursday that fully vaccinated people should mask themselves now due to the delta variant.

• “It does not replace common sense. It doesn’t replace masks and social distancing, we still have to do them. We have to do it even more now because we have a much more aggressive virus that passes between people much more easily. The masks work to prevent this, ”Vento said.