Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Friday, Aug 22, 2025

You don't always have to wear a mask outside. Experts share 'really simple' ways to know when you need one and when you don't.

You don't always have to wear a mask outside. Experts share 'really simple' ways to know when you need one and when you don't.

It's not hard to figure out when to wear a mask outside, so "be informed and empowered to make the right decision" for yourself, experts say.

Don Milton is as serious as they come about wearing masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19 from person to person.

As one of the world's leading experts on how viruses spread through the air, it makes sense that he's adopted a conservative stance during the pandemic — he sports an N95 (the "gold standard" for masks) on his trips to the grocery store, for example.

But these days, when Milton goes for a bike ride around College Park and the University of Maryland, where he is a professor of environmental health and medicine, his mask remains out of sight. It's tucked into a pocket in the back of his cycling jersey.

He doesn't worry much about the fact that his strenuous exercise might be generating lots of aerosols (very light, floating particles) in the fresh air around him, because he's riding solo. And besides, he knows that outdoors, there is infinite ventilation, in case someone were to ever ride up behind him.

"Hopefully, you can educate people, and we can do things that make sense," he said.

Milton's own rule for outdoor mask-wearing is simple and clear: "In a place where you might be close to other people, or where you might run into somebody you know and you might stop and want to talk to them for a while and one of you is going to be up or down wind of the other person, then you should probably have a mask on," he told Insider.

Though Milton knows well that the risk of transmitting the virus outside is far lower than indoors, he stresses it's still not zero.

"Barbecues last summer were showing up in the Maryland contact tracing data as a risk, something that people were reporting having done that were infected," he said. "If you're going to be close to other people outdoors and everybody is not vaccinated, then you certainly need to be wearing masks."

Public health experts agree: there are simple rules for when we need to wear a mask outside and when we don't
A restaurant during the COVID-19 pandemic.


Leana Wen, an emergency physician and public health professor at George Washington University, spoke to Insider about her own outdoor masking rule while out on an evening walk, unmasked.

"I think we can make this really simple," Wen said. "If you are outdoors and you can keep at least six feet away from others, you don't need to wear a mask."

Wen and Milton are joining a growing number of public health experts around the globe in saying: outdoor mask mandates have never made much sense, and only serve to erode trust and respect for public health precautions.

Muge Cevik, an infectious disease researcher and science communicator at the University of St Andrews, told Insider that fewer than one in ten reported COVID-19 cases involve outdoor transmission, "and those are typically associated with prolonged close interactions, or settings where people mix both indoors and outdoors," she said in an email.

"People make complex decisions regarding risks every day and should be informed and empowered to make the right decision for themselves for outdoor masks," she added.



"People have common sense, and we don't need for laws to be so overly broad," Wen said. "What Israel has done in lifting the mask mandates after a large number of people have been vaccinated and the number of infections is much lower, I think that's probably where we will end up going."

When Wen spots a neighbor up the street, she either quickly puts her mask on, or she crosses the street. This is a simple "common courtesy" during a pandemic, she says.

"If there is a chance that you could be within six feet of others, you should bring a mask with you, and wear that mask if you cannot keep physical distancing."

Comments

mike 4 year ago
Took them very long to find out.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Trump Backs Putin’s Land-for-Peace Proposal Amid Kyiv’s Rejection
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
United States Sells Luxury Yacht Amadea, Valued at Approximately $325 Million, in First Sale of a Seized Russian Yacht Since the Invasion of Ukraine
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Russia Formally Recognizes Taliban Government in Afghanistan
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Mediators Edge Closer to Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Agreement
Germany Seeks Taliban Deal to Deport Afghan Migrants
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
×