Previous reports by the CDC have advised healthy Americans to not wear or purchase face masks, as there is a shortage of masks available and they're most useful for infected people and health care professionals or caregivers interacting with coronavirus patients.
While this is still true, new reports are calling into question whether more people in the United States should be wearing masks.
As there's currently a shortage of masks available for health professionals, everyday people should not be going out of their way to buy them. However, when asked if those who already own or have access to a mask should be wearing them, Dr. Luby offered his opinion based on his knowledge of previous outbreaks and communicable disease epidemiology.
"In my opinion, it's reasonable to wear a mask based on two observations. First, in the SARS outbreak in Hong Kong people who wore masks were less likely to get SARS. This is an observational study, it wasn't randomized, but just as hand-washing was protective, so was mask-wearing," he said.
"This is the same family of viruses. We don't have very hard evidence, but if you're wearing a mask, you may not be touching your face as often and you're thinking about risk. This might change your overall behavior. Due to the behavior cue it gives you and the observations from the SARS outbreak, I think it would be reasonable, if you have a mask available, to wear it. Masks should be prioritized for health care workers, but there is evidence that suggests the benefit of masks."
Dr. Luby also continued by saying that now that evidence has emerged stating that transmission can occur with asymptomatic individuals, wearing a mask you already own may prevent spreading the disease.