# Coronavirus COVID-19 (2019-nCoV) Thread - 2022 Breaking News **URL:** \ **Category:** The Quarantine Zone\ **Tags:** covid-quarantine\ **Created:** [January 1, 2022, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022 "2022-01-01T05:02:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 28
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/541 "2022-04-12T15:20:03Z")
Does anyone have a satisfactory explanation, psychological or physical or cognitive, for the improper mask wearing? I know masks slip and people forget that they have then under their chin: normal human error stuff. Still. I live in an area with pretty good mask and vaccine compliance, and yet huge numbers of people don’t cover their noses, or pull them down to talk, or take them off to cough (okay, I’ve only seen that one twice). Why do such a large proportion of people comply, but badly? Is it sulky rebellion, misunderstanding? Is the population as a whole this bad at everything, but I don’t usually have such clear visual evidence? I suppose this isn’t really breaking news, but there must people people studying this phenomenon. ---
**Author:** ![Jay\_Z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Jay\_Z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jay_Z)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/542 "2022-04-12T15:23:30Z")
Because people had never worn masks before and the training was entirely ad hoc? I think given the circumstances, I have zero surprise that it wasn’t done better. People were messaged “wear a mask” and that’s it. If we wanted more as a society, we’d have to spend a lot more time messaging, assuming there wasn’t rebellion against the increased messaging. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/543 "2022-04-12T15:34:18Z")
I don’t know… that explanation seems to suit 2020 very well, but is a bit harder to accept in 2022, when mask wearing has been common. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Bredin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@John\_Bredin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Bredin)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/544 "2022-04-12T15:52:50Z")
Some people pull their masks down to talk because, while a mask isn’t a muzzle like the Covid deniers insist, it _is_ a muffler. Stand on the other side of a counter with a plexiglass shield between you and a store (or bank, or office) clerk and say something with your mask on in an “indoor voice” and you often get back a “huh?” or “pardon?” or the clerk misunderstands what you said. Your two choices at that point are to lower your mask or raise your voice. ---
**Author:** ![tofor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tofor/32/13727_2.png) [@tofor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tofor)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/545 "2022-04-12T16:08:17Z")
Yeah, I almost got 4 times as much salami as I wanted because the meat guy didn’t understand my muffled voice. But I didn’t have to pull down my mask to clarify. The guy at the clinic where I got my last shot, _giving COVID vaccinations_ had his mask so loose it was visibly sagging off his face. Just…what? ---
**Author:** ![Jay\_Z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Jay\_Z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jay_Z)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/546 "2022-04-12T16:28:54Z")
Suppose in 2020 authorities decided that we all needed to start brushing our teeth. When no one had ever brushed their teeth before. I think in 2022 there would still be plenty of people not brushing their teeth. And teeth brushing is considerably less burdensome than mask wearing. I made sure my family wore masks where they were requested or mandated. One of my kids had a problem keeping it over his nose. He really never got any better at it. I had some KN95 masks, never N95 and rarely even saw anyone wearing those. Otherwise it was the standard plastic/latex whatever masks, which were reused, which is another no-no. That maybe is somewhere in the ballpark of where the average person with kids is going to do. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/547 "2022-04-12T18:19:25Z")
I would very much expect that, if toothbrushing were mandated two years ago, people would be more likely to do it correctly, as they’d have recent memory of being told how. But, even if they didn’t, that is harder than wearing a mask correctly. Literally all you have to remember is “your mouth and nose should always remain covered.” The only hard part is that it can slip and you need to fix that. Wearing them wrong came about due to malicious compliance to mandates. Not because people didn know how to wear them. ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/548 "2022-04-12T19:02:22Z")
Most of the mask requirements are a joke since they don’t mandate minimum standards for masks. It doesn’t really matter if someone wears something trivial like a gaiter or bandanna regardless of it it covers their mouth and nose. Even procedure/surgical masks are gappy when worn properly. They are not meant to provide a tight seal, so air easily slips in and out along the edges. For a mask mandate to be worthwhile, it should be with certified masks that provide a reliable fit and filtration, like N95 masks. Anything less is really providing an insufficient level of protection and a false sense of security And that’s made worse by the poor mask fit seen in the general public. The general public wears insufficient masks and wears them improperly. Each person should do what’s necessary to make themselves safe, and that’s by wearing a mask like an N95. That way the person is safe regardless of what anyone else is doing. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/549 "2022-04-12T22:43:32Z")
Everyone else wearing a surgical mask properly helps you, even though the masks don’t make a tight seal. ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/550 "2022-04-12T23:04:45Z")
That is just anecdotal and not precise. Does it help 90% or 5%? The filtration tests of surgical masks are done in lab settings, but that is nothing like how surgical masks are worn in public. The percentage of people wearing a surgical mask properly is such a tiny percentage in the general public that it’s not really relevant. Sure, every mask provides some benefit, but a mask that’s only providing 5% protection isn’t really worth much. If anyone is depending on the behavior of the general public to keep them safe, they are taking a huge risk. Instead, wear a mask with very reliable protection, like an N95. It’s not comfortable, but you can be more assured that the air is actually being filtered by the mask and providing proper protection. People like wearing surgical masks because they’re comfortable, but they’re comfortable because they allow air to easily pass through gaps along the sides. There’s much less strain when the air can escape out the gaps rather than having to be forced through the mask material. Some of the droplets in your breath will be captured by the mask when the air moves along the surface of the mask on it’s way out the gaps, but most will freely escape out from the gaps. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/551 "2022-04-12T23:23:50Z")
We may live in different parts of the country, but i mostly see surgical masks worn well. Not always, but mostly. And there are complex mathy papers calculating the benefit based on various reasonable hypotheses. Honestly, surgical masks were a lot more useful against original strain than against the more infectious strains we have now. And i haven’t seen recent studies. But back when original and alpha were rampant, i saw a pretty good paper that suggested a crappy cloth mask worn in an elementary school enormously reduced the likelihood of spread. ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2022, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/552 "2022-04-13T01:56:11Z")
| Case count update as of | 4/12/2022 | 01:26 GMT | | --- | --- | --- | | | | | | _Worldwide_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 500,838,107 | | | Dead | 6,209,173 | | | Recovered | 450,911,576 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 797 | | | | | | | _In the US_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 82,133,342 | | | Dead | 1,013,044 | | | Recovered | 80,015,081 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 3,029 | | | | | | | **Differences since last time** | | | | | | | | _Worldwide_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 3,318,359.0 | | | Dead | 10,512.0 | | | Recovered | 17,810,494.0 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 1.4 | | | | | | | _In the US_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 98,604.0 | | | Dead | 1,379.0 | | | Recovered | 13,703,188.0 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 4.0 | | | | | | | | | | | **Last Time’s Numbers** | **4/9/2022** | **02:08 GMT** | | | | | | _Worldwide_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 497,519,748 | | | Dead | 6,198,661 | | | Recovered | 433,101,082 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 795.2 | | | | | | | _In the US_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 82,034,738 | | | Dead | 1,011,665 | | | Recovered | 66,311,893 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 3,025 | | ---
**Author:** ![mistymage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mistymage/32/459_2.png) [@mistymage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mistymage)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2022, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/553 "2022-04-13T04:42:09Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Wearing them wrong came about due to malicious compliance to mandates. Not because people didn know how to wear them. Maybe someone could make a meme showing young people wearing their pants under their buttocks thus exposing their underwear (hopefully) or too small shorts/jorts equated to wearing a mask under their nose or chin or both. Only 3 more months and someone could add Patriotic head explosions. I know: fashion choices vs freedumbs. I didn’t hear back last week from my doc in the box … I’ll be calling Friday morning to see when I can get in to get a 2nd booster. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2022, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/554 "2022-04-13T06:04:43Z")
> [@tofor](#): > > If you’re serious, stop letting the unvaccinated run around making everybody sick. This is the biggie. A while back, there was a growing attitude (according to the op-eds) that the sensible people were getting fed up with the anti-vaxxers, the anti-maskers, the lies and misinformation, while the hospitals are still overflowing and the health care workers getting burned out. There was a growing demand for mandates. Biden’s attempted vaccination mandates seemed popular among reasonable people (i.e., those who were already vaccinated anyway if they were able). Then it all came crashing down. The courts threw out the mandates. The anti-vax backlash piled on. I want to see an anti-vax anti-backlash backlash. It’s time to lock down the nation just like Shanghai, but for the unvaxxed (those who could be vaxxed) only. Lock them in their bedrooms, chain them to their beds, and chain the doors. They have been called “plague rats” by some on this Board (and IIRC that caused some argument and maybe even some mod notes). But the time is over that we should continue putting up with the death-cult fools. Everyone who can get vaxxed but won’t should be strictly quarantined. What, me, radicalized? Imagine that! ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2022, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/555 "2022-04-13T11:09:35Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > We may live in different parts of the country, but i mostly see surgical masks worn well. Not always, but mostly. We are just back from Sint Maarten/Saint Martin and I’m embarrassed by how much better the islanders were about masking than Americans were. Mask compliance was higher there than I’ve ever seen it at home. There has been tension between the two sides of the island, though. One side had access to the vaccine early on and has had high compliance. The other side got vaccine later and is more mask dependent and their vaccine rates remain lower. At one point there was talk of closing the border because “the other side” wasn’t “doing things right”. We had canceled our trip in January because of Omicron hitting so hard. Seems we made the right choice from what we heard. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2022, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/556 "2022-04-13T11:28:32Z")
Reminder that this is the breaking news thread. (Yeah, i have trouble remembering, too.) We have other threads for rants, random chit chat, and the like. ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2022, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/557 "2022-04-14T02:58:25Z")
| Case count update as of | 4/14/2022 | 01:48 GMT | | --- | --- | --- | | | | | | _Worldwide_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 502,084,278 | | | Dead | 6,214,019 | | | Recovered | 452,035,856 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 797 | | | | | | | _In the US_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 82,192,880 | | | Dead | 1,014,114 | | | Recovered | 80,052,061 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 3,032 | | | | | | | **Differences since last time** | | | | | | | | _Worldwide_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 1,246,171.0 | | | Dead | 4,846.0 | | | Recovered | 1,124,280.0 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 0.6 | | | | | | | _In the US_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 59,538.0 | | | Dead | 1,070.0 | | | Recovered | 36,980.0 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 3.0 | | | | | | | | | | | **Last Time’s Numbers** | **4/12/2022** | **01:26 GMT** | | | | | | _Worldwide_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 500,838,107 | | | Dead | 6,209,173 | | | Recovered | 450,911,576 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 796.6 | | | | | | | _In the US_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 82,133,342 | | | Dead | 1,013,044 | | | Recovered | 80,015,081 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 3,029 | | ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2022, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/558 "2022-04-14T16:43:59Z")
Looks like the UK Office for National Statistics (ONS) is reporting a day early this week because of the Easter Holidays. Here’s the BBC update - about one person in 15 has the virus this week.: > **[Covid levels starting to fall in UK, says ONS](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-61106918)** > > About one in 15 people would test positive for coronavirus, as levels start to fall. > About 4.4 million people had the virus in their body in the week up to 9 April, down from nearly 4.9 million the week before… > > …The study, which uses its own testing, gives the clearest indication of the virus’s spread since free testing ended in England. > > It tests thousands of people at random - whether or not they have symptoms - to estimate how much virus there is in the country. The article has a handy graphical summary of test results going back to October 21. This was the kicking-off point for some musings, which may lead to some non-breaking news posts; so I have expanded on these facts in a post in the General Discussion And Chit-Chat thread: > [@Coronavirus general discussion and chit-chat](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-general-discussion-and-chit-chat/917903/1486): > > Looks like the UK Office for National Statistics (ONS) is reporting a day early this week because of the Easter Holidays. Here’s the BBC update - about one person in 15 has the virus this week: [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-61106918](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-61106918) About 4.4 million people had the virus in their body in the week up to 9 April, down from nearly 4.9 million the week before… …The study, which uses its own testing, gives the clearest indication of the virus’s spread since free testing ended in England. It … j ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2022, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/559 "2022-04-15T01:28:16Z")
| Case count update as of | 4/15/2022 | 01:22 GMT | | --- | --- | --- | | | | | | _Worldwide_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 502,832,846 | | | Dead | 6,217,440 | | | Recovered | 453,122,340 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 798 | | | | | | | _In the US_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 82,252,965 | | | Dead | 1,014,902 | | | Recovered | 80,095,347 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 3,034 | | | | | | | **Differences since last time** | | | | | | | | _Worldwide_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 748,568.0 | | | Dead | 3,421.0 | | | Recovered | 1,086,484.0 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 0.4 | | | | | | | _In the US_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 60,085.0 | | | Dead | 788.0 | | | Recovered | 43,286.0 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 2.0 | | | | | | | | | | | **Last Time’s Numbers** | **4/14/2022** | **01:48 GMT** | | | | | | _Worldwide_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 502,084,278 | | | Dead | 6,214,019 | | | Recovered | 452,035,856 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 797.2 | | | | | | | _In the US_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 82,192,880 | | | Dead | 1,014,114 | | | Recovered | 80,052,061 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 3,032 | | ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2022, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022/560 "2022-04-16T05:04:16Z")
| Case count update as of | 4/16/2022 | 04:55 GMT | | --- | --- | --- | | | | | | _Worldwide_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 503,846,118 | | | Dead | 6,220,414 | | | Recovered | 454,299,839 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 798 | | | | | | | _In the US_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 82,295,768 | | | Dead | 1,015,357 | | | Recovered | 80,129,374 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 3,036 | | | | | | | **Differences since last time** | | | | | | | | _Worldwide_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 1,013,272.0 | | | Dead | 2,974.0 | | | Recovered | 1,177,499.0 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 0.4 | | | | | | | _In the US_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 42,803.0 | | | Dead | 455.0 | | | Recovered | 34,027.0 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 2.0 | | | | | | | | | | | **Last Time’s Numbers** | **4/15/2022** | **01:22 GMT** | | | | | | _Worldwide_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 502,832,846 | | | Dead | 6,217,440 | | | Recovered | 453,122,340 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 797.6 | | | | | | | _In the US_: | | | | | | | | Total cases | 82,252,965 | | | Dead | 1,014,902 | | | Recovered | 80,095,347 | | | Deaths / 1M pop | 3,034 | | [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022.md?page=27) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2022-breaking-news/957022.md?page=29)