Amid record-high reported mask usage, Fauci urges Americans to ‘wear a mask’

Amid record-high reports of mask usage throughout the country, infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci this week urged Americans to wear face coverings as a way to stem record-high positive test results of COVID-19 nationwide.

Asked by NPR on Thursday how the incoming Biden administration might work to stop the spread of COVID-19, Fauci cited, in part, the rollout of COVID-19 vaccinations.

Another tactic, he said, would be “having everyone for at least 100 days — at least — wear a mask.”

“Everyone uniformly, so we don't have disparities where some people are adhering to public health measures and others are not,” Fauci said.

Fauci’s call for mask usage comes as record numbers of Americans report wearing masks while in public. The most recent data from researchers at Carnegie Mellon University who have been tracking self-reported mask usage nationwide show that, in 38 states, mask usage is above 90%, while in the remaining 12 it is above 80%.

Those percentages have risen markedly since researchers began keeping track last fall, though the number of daily COVID-19 positive tests, and deaths associated with the virus, has skyrocketed since then.