A Vanderbilt University Study Shows Areas With Mask Mandates Have Lower COVID-19 Rates
COVID-19 hospitalizations are lower in areas of Tennessee with a mask mandate than in areas without one, a new study finds.
A study by Vanderbilt University compared hospitalizations from COVID-19 in counties across Tennessee. Researchers found that counties with a mask mandate had a much lower rate of hospitalizations than areas without a mandate, reinforcing the importance of wearing a mask to help stop the spread of the virus.
“All of Tennessee has experienced an upsurge and an increase in those hospitalizations,” said Dr. Melissa McPheeters, a research professor of health policy and biomedical informatics at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. “But it’s hitting those hospitals that are drawing their patients from non-masked mandate counties the hardest.” In fact, hospitals, where at least 75% of cases come from non-masked counties, have seen an increase of more than 200% in COVID-19 cases since July 19. Hospitals, where 75% or more cases are from masked counties, have seen no difference since July 1. However, researchers clarify that masked counties are also seeing “greater changes in other community behavior” that could also contribute to the lower hospitalizations that masked counties are also seeing “greater changes in other community behavior” that could also contribute to the lower hospitalizations.
Today there were 83,757 new coronavirus cases in the U.S., according to data from Johns Hopkins University — making this the highest single day of reported cases since the pandemic began.
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) October 29, 2020
The Tennessee Department of Health has said this sharp increase has been happening particularly in rural communities, where COVID-19 is spreading in much higher numbers across Tennessee and the U.S. over the past month.
The study also tracked consumer spending habits and found that people were less likely to go out when cases were high in their area than if there was simply a stay-at-home order in effect. “The best way to manage the economic fallout is to definitively manage the virus using proven strategies that can break chains of transmission. Only when the transmission is reduced will individuals feel comfortable participating in activities that support the local economy as they did before the pandemic,” the researchers wrote. Not surprisingly, the data also showed that restaurants, bars, and the entertainment industry have been hit the hardest by the pandemic; traveling to bars and restaurants is down 24% from 2019.
This study is one of many studies that have outlined the importance of wearing masks to help slow the virus’s spread. Medical professionals such as Dr. Anthony Fauci have called for a national mask mandate. Yet, President Donald Trump steadfastly refuses to institute one, making a medical issue into a partisan one. Republican states North and South Dakota are experiencing the worst COVID-19 outbreaks per capita in the country, and they do not have mask mandates. “Those who don’t want to wear a mask shouldn’t be shamed into wearing one,” South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem wrote in an op-ed for the Rapid City Journal last week, citing sources that “question the effectiveness of masks.”
MAJOR BREAKING NEWS (UPDATE): As Donald Trump Falsely Declares That America “Has Turned the Corner” on COVID-19, Back in Reality America Has Just Set a New World Record—a Terrifying *91,300* New COVID-19 Diagnoses in 24 Hours pic.twitter.com/I47E6uj2IJ
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) October 30, 2020
As more people are drawn inside with colder weather, we hope everyone stays safe and wears a mask.
