JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Dr. Anthony Fauci, the chief medical adviser to the president and member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, spoke Monday on NBC News about the protection offered by “double masking.”
“So if you have a physical covering with one layer, you put another layer on, it just makes common sense that it likely would be more effective,” Fauci said on NBC News’ Today. “That’s the reason why you see people either double masking or doing a version of an N95.”
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Dr. Mohammed Reza, a Jacksonville infectious disease doctor, told News 6 partner News4Jax he believes double masking helps better protect people from COVID-19, as well as the new variant.
“We know those N95s, which are scarce and hard to come by, provide the best protection and multiple layers in that one mask,” Reza said. “So if you’re unable to use that N95, which is needed for frontline workers, frontline employees, it is better to double mask.”
News4Jax spoke with some Jacksonville residents to get their thoughts on wearing a second mask.
“I’m sure some people would do it, probably 50-50,” Noel Hamilton said.
“It’s hard enough to wear one,” Joyce Ashley said.
“I think that would be the right thing to do,” Carter Elliott said. “More layers you have would be more effective.”
“I think one is enough,” Carnell Tarver said. “The one you got should be taking care of the job.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not recommended double masking, but it does recommend masks with multiple layers of protection.
Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry on Monday extended Duval County’s mask mandate into February. That means everyone over the age of 6 must continue wearing a face mask or face covering while in public indoor spaces, including employees and customers at businesses within city limits. There are, however, exceptions for certain cases such as people dining at a restaurant or a patient visiting the dentist.