US squandered opportunity to beat back Covid-19 by not using masks: Experts

The United States has squandered one of the best opportunities to beat back coronavirus by not resorting to face covering to prevent the spread of infection, believe experts.

The United States has squandered one of the best opportunities to beat back coronavirus by not resorting to face covering to prevent the spread of infection, believe experts.
The mask is the simplest and among the most effective weapons against the coronavirus in the public health arsenal.

Yet from the start, America's relationship with face coverings has been deeply fraught, Washington Post reported.

"Some countries took out their masks as soon as this happened," said Monica Gandhi, an infectious-disease specialist from the University of California at San Francisco, "and their rates of death are very low."

Gandhi is of the view that the US coronavirus response has been full of missteps and unforced errors delayed acceptance of universal masking.

According to the Washington Post, the country hit a tipping point on widespread mask use only this month with a majority of states and the nation's largest retailers all mandating them.

Anthony S. Fauci, the nation's top infectious-disease expert, had repeatedly told Americans "there is no reason" for anyone in the United States to wear a mask in the beginning of the outbreak. U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams tweeted on February 29: "Seriously people- STOP BUYING MASKS!"

Many experts supported the anti-mask guidance, arguing they were not sure that face-covering would make a significant difference.

But some like George Gao, the director-general of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, warned that the United States was making a "big mistake" by not mandating masks.