California’s FLiRT-fueled COVID surge is continuing to spawn infections at a dizzying rate, with coronavirus levels in wastewater reaching some of the highest levels seen since 2022.
Regular masks don't provide much protection for yourself, they're only supposed to stop you spreading something to others. N95s (properly fitted) are the only real ingress protection if something happens to be floating around.
That being said, unless you're immunocompromised there's not much to worry about with covid variants right now
All of what he said is wrong though. All masks help even if just a bit. N95/kn100’s help a ton. I use a black kn100 everyday, it fits great, super comfy, and looks great. https://ppeo.com/goods/black-kn100-mask/
Covid is something to worry about because it affects every organ in the body causing organ damage and brain damage. Long Covid gives people possibly life long disabilities and 1 in 10 infections cause Long Covid (and most people are getting 2-3 infections a year)
Despite the original double vax, and every suggested booster, I'm pretty sure I caught it from my dentist in July 2022. I was still wearing a mask everywhere at that point, with a KN95 in any situation where I'd be near people for extended situations.
I've had the flu 3 times in my life. This was as bad as the worst of them, with a completely lost week.
That said, I am hyper cautious around others and will still keep wearing my 'please maintain your distance' sign.
That being said, unless you’re immunocompromised there’s not much to worry about with covid variants right now
There's still many short and long term effects from COVID that people who aren't immunocompromised should be concerned about. Also, lack of ingress protection is a moot point if both parties are wearing masks though, right? Which is precisely why mask mandates make sense.