# Do covid precautions work? (NYT article re Omicron) **URL:** \ **Category:** The Quarantine Zone\ **Tags:** covid-quarantine\ **Created:** [March 9, 2022, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752 "2022-03-09T15:10:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SpacemanSpiff\_II](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e19adc/32.png) [@SpacemanSpiff\_II](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpacemanSpiff_II)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/1 "2022-03-09T15:10:39Z")
The following link is to an article in today’s NYT, but I’ve linked to another source which does not appear to be paywalled. [Do Covid Precautions Work? – The New York Times - Teazilla](https://teazilla.com/do-covid-precautions-work-the-new-york-times/) The basic gist is that it appears that social distancing type precautions (masks, social distancing, crowd limits etc.) have a very limited effect if any at all. The theory suggested is that although the precautions lessen the likelihood of covid transmittal in _any given single encounter_, the pervasiveness and contageousness of covid is such that ultimately everyone has a very high chance of getting it anyway, so _in large picture_ the measures didn’t work. Something to think about, considering the enormous cost of these measures. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/2 "2022-03-09T15:17:12Z")
So this isn’t a NY Times article. It appears to be a cherry picking opinion piece. This feels like a very misleading article to me. At least it emphasizes that “Covid vaccines are remarkably effective at preventing severe illness.” ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/3 "2022-03-09T15:21:16Z")
It’s the same text as the New York Times email article I got this morning. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/4 "2022-03-09T15:23:13Z")
> [@SpacemanSpiff\_II](#): > > The theory suggested is that although the precautions lessen the likelihood of covid transmittal in _any given single encounter_ , the pervasiveness and contageousness of covid is such that ultimately everyone has a very high chance of getting it anyway, so _in large picture_ the measures didn’t work. If I understand correctly, the article is specifically addressing the Omicron variant, which is significantly more contagious than earlier variants. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/5 "2022-03-09T15:23:54Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > This feels like a very misleading article to me. What did you think was misleading about it? ---
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/6 "2022-03-09T15:24:55Z")
> [@SpacemanSpiff\_II](#): > > Do Covid Precautions Work? – The New York Times In this “red area” vs. “blue area” comparison, did they control for population density ? Far more metropolitan areas are blue than red. Far more rural areas are red than blue. If they didn’t control for this … worthless. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/7 "2022-03-09T15:25:39Z")
Seemed like a lot of cherry picking, like I said. ---
**Author:** ![SpacemanSpiff\_II](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e19adc/32.png) [@SpacemanSpiff\_II](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpacemanSpiff_II)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/8 "2022-03-09T15:29:46Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > So this isn’t a NY Times article. It’s a NYT article, as I wrote in the OP. > **[Do Covid Precautions Work? (Published 2022)](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/09/briefing/covid-precautions-red-blue-states.html)** > > Yes, but they haven’t made a big difference. ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/9 "2022-03-09T15:33:23Z")
It follows the ideas outlined in this article in the Lancet: [COVID-19 will continue but the end of the pandemic is near (thelancet.com)](https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?campaign_id=9&emc=edit_nn_20220309&instance_id=55226&nl=the-morning&pii=S0140-6736%2822%2900100-3®i_id=173834906&segment_id=85016&te=1&user_id=b6737984c553c945823bf467c90329fa) > Blockquote > Surprisingly, IHME models1 > suggest that the > transmission intensity of omicron is so high that > policy actions—eg, increasing mask use, expanding > vaccination coverage in people who have not been > vaccinated, or delivering third doses of COVID-19 > vaccines—taken in the next weeks will have limited > impact on the course of the omicron wave. IHME > estimates suggest that increasing use of masks to > 80% of the population, for example, will only reduce > cumulative infections over the next 4 months by 10%. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/10 "2022-03-09T15:45:32Z")
OP, can you ask a mod to change your title? It really should be, Did COVID precautions work against the Omicron variant? My guess is that pre-Omicron, the precautions were much more effective, but omicron’s transmissibility was so high that it overwhelmed them. Also, vaccination is one of the precautions, and that precaution certainly worked very well in combating deaths. ---
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/11 "2022-03-09T15:47:30Z")
The article is highly misleading. They only considering the last few months, and comparing red and blue areas of the country. The problem is that the blue areas are likely to have less natural immunity to having followed precautions more strictly back during the Delta era. Now that we’re in the Omicron area (with a less virulent strain) combined with other news events pushing COVID to the back burner, fewer people in the blue areas have continued following strict precautions. They are thus more likely to get Omicron (due to a lower population level of natural immunity). Hong Kong is a good example of this. But yes, precautions work. Masks certainly do. I’ve personally treated and directly interacted with over 100 patients with COVID. So have all the other doctors and NPs in my group. None of us have caught it, and I doubt it’s because we all have some innate genetic resistance. It’s because we’ve been vaccinated and wear N95 masks. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/12 "2022-03-09T15:58:51Z")
> [@FlikTheBlue](#): > > But yes, precautions work. Masks certainly do. I’ve personally treated and directly interacted with over 100 patients with COVID. So have all the other doctors and NPs in my group. None of us have caught it, and I doubt it’s because we all have some innate genetic resistance. It’s because we’ve been vaccinated and wear N95 masks. The article is very clear that vaccines _do_ work. > [@](#): > > One, nothing matters nearly as much as vaccination. ---
**Author:** ![SpacemanSpiff\_II](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e19adc/32.png) [@SpacemanSpiff\_II](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpacemanSpiff_II)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/13 "2022-03-09T16:05:14Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > OP, can you ask a mod to change your title? It really should be, Did COVID precautions work against the Omicron variant? > > My guess is that pre-Omicron, the precautions were much more effective, but omicron’s transmissibility was so high that it overwhelmed them. Also, vaccination is one of the precautions, and that precaution certainly worked very well in combating deaths. The title of the OP was taken directly from the NYT headline. Both the NYT and the OP were clear that this was about social distancing type precautions vs vaccinations. Part of the argument in the article was that considering the difference in vaccination rates and their known effectiveness, the fact that the differences in infection rates was not greater than it is suggests that measures other than vaccination are of limited efficacy, if any. ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/14 "2022-03-09T16:12:33Z")
Precautions work, but the thing that doesn’t work is expecting the general public to understand the science behind the recommendations and being diligent about doing the right thing. There is a huge discrepancy in proper mask usage versus usage in public. The studies with masks are done are lab settings with good masks that fit properly, but that’s nothing like how masks are worn in public. The public thinks all masks are the same and that fit is irrelevant to how well they work. Lab tests which say that an N95 mask can stop 95-99% of infections are irrelevant if the general public thinks wearing a loose bandanna provides maximum protection. Only a well-fitting \*95 mask is going to provide reliable protection against the virus. Anything else is going to be questionable and highly variable. And the same with the 6’ separation. The general public thinks 6’ provides a magical force field against the virus and that they are 100% safe if they are 6’ 1" away from another person. I think one of the biggest failures of the pandemic was the failure of the people in charge to come up with policies that would be effective for the actual population. Saying “wear a mask” to the public means the public hears “wear something on your face that is mask-like”. They don’t hear “wear an OSHA approved particle respirator with N95 filtration or better”. These sorts of studies which say precautions don’t work are just going to make things worse. Precautions work, but they have to be presented to the public in a way in which that population understands so they take them seriously and execute them properly. We need more psychologists and sociologists at the top along with the scientists so that the messages are crafted in a way that they are more widely followed. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/15 "2022-03-09T16:12:54Z")
We’re smarter than the NY Times headline writers, I guess, because we can read the article and see that it’s only about omicron. To add to this: COVID precautions definitely worked to almost eliminate the flu, even though they were less effective against the COVID virus because it was much more contagious. Similarly, they were probably effective against the pre-omicron variant, but were less effective, or maybe ineffective, against omicron because that variant is much, much more contagious than the previous variants. Your OP and title talk in general about whether COVID precautions work, but the actual article talked only about omicron. I think your title and OP summarizing the article are misleading. If I wrote a misleading title, I would ask a mod to change it. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/16 "2022-03-09T16:18:57Z")
> [@SpacemanSpiff\_II](#): > > the fact that the differences in infection rates was not greater than it is suggests that measures other than vaccination are of limited efficacy, if any. One study is not a final word, as others noted more research is needed, but previous ones point at masks to be better than the 10% effectiveness claimed in the OP study. > **[Effectiveness of Face Mask or Respirator Use in Indoor ...](https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/wr/mm7106e1.htm)** > > This report describes face mask or respirator effectiveness in helping protect against COVID-19 infection. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/17 "2022-03-09T18:10:50Z")
Non-pharmaceutical precautions work, but they largely work to delay infection. That can be worth it if you’re delaying until vaccines or better treatments are readily available, or if you’re delaying to flatten a spike that will overwhelm hospitals or other services. But long-term they likely have little value for most people compared to the cost. And of course it’s only the good ones that work. Effective masks work quite well. Spending more time outside works well. Better HVAC filtering works well. A bunch of other stuff, like surface cleaning, standing further apart, wearing masks for the 10 seconds in the restaurant while you’re walking to your table, plexiglass barriers, etc. probably do basically nothing and are just silly wastes of time and effort. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/18 "2022-03-09T18:14:10Z")
> [@DavidNRockies](#): > > In this “red area” vs. “blue area” comparison, did they control for population density ? Did they also control for the fact that, even at the best of times, most of the US kind of half-assed the COVID precautions? Did they compare the US to Canada at all? ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/19 "2022-03-09T18:20:09Z")
Man, is that ever true. I visited Montreal and Quebec City in August, and the precautions were much stronger – wear a mask everywhere inside, sanitize your hands every time you come into an establishment. Compare to my area of NJ (my area voted for Biden) where the mask mandates were barely in place and often not followed when they were, no one was required to sanitize, there was no distancing happening. Maybe the article should be, “do half-assed COVID precautions work against a highly contagious disease?” ---
**Author:** ![Tfletch1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tfletch1/32/5340_2.png) [@Tfletch1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tfletch1)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2022, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752/20 "2022-03-09T18:21:10Z")
> [@zimaane](#): > > It follows the ideas outlined in this article in the Lancet: > > [COVID-19 will continue but the end of the pandemic is near (thelancet.com)](https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?campaign_id=9&emc=edit_nn_20220309&instance_id=55226&nl=the-morning&pii=S0140-6736%2822%2900100-3®i_id=173834906&segment_id=85016&te=1&user_id=b6737984c553c945823bf467c90329fa) That’s not an article. It’s a letter with an opinion. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-covid-precautions-work-nyt-article-re-omicron/960752.md?page=2)