August 13, 2020

Fauci recommends eye protection on top of masks, saying the everyday person should consider it in closed spaces, the latest in a steady escalation of personal protective guidance that keeps moving the goalposts without a clear stopping point. The CDC warns against masks with exhalation valves, which it says allow virus particles to escape, while a Duke University study finds that some face coverings, including certain neck gaiters, may be worse than wearing no mask at all. Biden calls for a nationwide mask mandate as Georgia Governor Brian Kemp drops his lawsuit against Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms over her city mask requirement but signals the fight is not over, three stories that together capture the confusion, the politics, and the shifting science of masking in mid-August.

Drug overdoses spike sharply during the pandemic, with NPR reporting federal health officials describe the convergence of the two crises as a nightmare. A separate study claims COVID-19 is at least as deadly as the 1918 flu pandemic, a comparison that depends on how the death toll is counted. The National Urban League reports the COVID-19 death rate for Black Americans at twice that of whites, with three times as many infections, a disparity the coverage treats as a finding that demands action even as the causes remain up for debate.