NORFOLK, Va. — As Omicron continues to spread through communities, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) now officially says it’s time to upgrade your mask.
"Right now in the state of Virginia, you’re not safe if you’re indoors, in a public place and you’re not wearing a mask," said pediatrician Dr. Elizabeth Broderick.
The question is which kind of mask is best and why?
"You have to think about little tiny holes that you almost can’t see," she said.
With transmission rates as high as they are, Broderick said cloth masks aren’t getting the job done.
"If you hold it up to a light, you can see a light through the single layer of cloth. So, if you can see light, tiny little particles are freely moving in that fabric towards your mouth and out of that fabric towards your environment."
That’s why Broderick and the CDC are now encouraging everyone to upgrade to a KN95 or an N95 because they are better at filtering air.
"It has to fit closely to your face with no gaps on your cheek and no gaps above the mask going towards your eyes and your glasses and it needs to fit firmly to your chin," Broderick said.
Previously, the CDC recommended avoiding those higher quality masks so more healthcare workers could get their hands on them. Now, they said shortages are no longer a concern.
"I strongly recommend if you’re in an indoor public space in the state of Virginia that has a PCR test positivity rate of over 33%, you should be in an N95 or a KN95 and you should keep it on at all times," said Broderick.
The CDC also noted some masks are harder to tolerate than others and urged people to choose good-fitting masks that they will wear consistently.
All that being said, both the CDC and Broderick agree if you’re out and about and going inside businesses, a cloth mask is still better than no mask at all.