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CDC: It's time for "universal face mask use"

04 December 2020
Dan Ackermann

The CDC is urging “universal face mask use” for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic began, citing recent case spikes as the U.S. has entered a phase of “high-level transmission” before winter officially begins.

Why it matters: Daily COVID-related deaths across the U.S. hit a new record on Wednesday. Face coverings have been shown to increase protection of the wearer and those around them, despite some Americans' reluctance to use them.

The big picture: "With colder weather, more time spent indoors, the ongoing U.S. holiday season, and silent spread of disease" the country now requires requires a multi-pronged approach to reduce the risk of transmission. Universal mask use outside people's homes — whether indoors or in close proximity to others outdoors — is one crucial strategy, according to the CDC.

  • 50% of new infections are transmitted by asymptomatic people, which means face masks are essential to avoid contact.
  • Other strategies for prevention include social distancing, postponing travel and safeguarding at-risk groups.
  • The CDC has also advocated for creating community-level plans to distribute face masks to populations with barriers to access.

What they’re saying: “Consistent and correct use of face masks is a public health strategy critical to reducing respiratory transmission of SARS-CoV-2,” the CDC said in its Friday statement.

Context: Wearing face masks has been a contentious issue in the U.S., with states divided on mask mandates.

  • President Trump and some Republicans in his circle have not always followed CDC guidance to wear masks.

What to watch: President-elect Joe Biden told CNN on Thursday he plans to ask the American public to wear face masks for his first 100 days in office.

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

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Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.