This Is the Cost of Going a Day Without a Mask

It equals a $56.14 loss in GDP: 'Economist'
By Arden Dier,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 25, 2020 7:34 AM CDT
This Is the Cost of Going a Day Without a Mask
A sign encouraging the wearing of masks stands in downtown Nashville, Tenn., on Aug. 5, 2020.   (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

"Governments should do even more to nudge the minority of people who still forgo masks" into wearing them, according to the Economist, which has discovered the economic value to such a move. The paper determined that each American who wears a face mask for one day "is helping prevent a fall in GDP of $56.14." That's based on calculations from Goldman Sachs, which found that a face mask mandate could slow the daily growth rate of new coronavirus infections from about 1.6% to 0.6%, per the Washington Post. If this same result was achieved with a lockdown, it would result in a nearly 5% drop in GDP, the Economist reports, noting face coverings can help prevent lockdowns if used widely and effectively. "Not bad for something that you can buy for about 50 cents apiece," the outlet concludes. (More coronavirus stories.)

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