Aren't mask not effective against covid? Or so we are told.
It's not a simple yes/no thing.
The advice I've seen is that no mask is guaranteed as the virus is so small. However, in certain high risk situations it can offer some benefit if worn and used properly. So, nurses and doctors would have had fit tests and training on wearing PPE, and they are high risk for being in contact with a covid-19 patient, so if they're in contact with the patient, they should wear a mask.
A person sick with covid-19 is advised to wear a mask to catch their coughs/virus laden heavy breaths/sneezes to protect those close to them/the person nursing them. The person who's actually nursing the sick person is advised to wear one.
But the general public, who might not be following good hygiene practices with the mask, and maybe the closest they come to a confirmed case this week is five miles, then the public going through hundreds of millions of masks per day is not considered a very good use of the masks.
I'm sure most people are trying to do their best with the masks, but the eyes are exposed, and not everyone is wearing gloves, how many of those people are still touching a dirty surface and then rubbing their eyes and then shaking someone's hand?
So they're really saying to save the masks for when they're going to offer the greatest protection. Given the shortages and price gouging I've seen, I don't think that's bad advice. I wish it had been given weeks ago so that people who are immune suppressed or other higher risk group could go and get a pack of masks and some hand sanitizer today for a normal price.