Comment by nicoburns

I would not be at all surprised if mask use turns out to be a lot more significant a factor than western governments seem to be assuming. It seems obvious that pretty much any kind of face (mouth/nose) covering is going to be significantly better than nothing at preventing the spread of disease that spreads through droplets. Of course, we should do formal studies. But in the absence of data, masks being effective seems like a sensible default position to take.