US needs another full-scale lockdown and people will need to wear face masks for YEARS to stop coronavirus, expert warns
THE US will need another full-scale lockdown and masks will have to be worn for YEARS to stop coronavirus, an expert has warned.
Facial coverings will become part of the "new normal", according to Eric Toner, a senior scholar at the John Hopkins Center for Health Security.
"I think that mask wearing and some degree of social distancing, we will be living with - hopefully living with happily - for several years," Toner said.
"It's actually pretty straightforward. If we cover our faces and both you and anyone you're interacting with are wearing a mask, the risk of transmission goes way down," he told .
"Being outside, having distance between you and other people reduces the risk of transmission dramatically."
Over three million people have tested positive for coronavirus in the US with 42 states witnessing a rise in new Covid-19 infections, according to a Reuters analysis.
, with more than 55,000 being reported nationwide last Thursday.
Presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden said his "priority" was masks following a surge in coronavirus cases, according to
"Anyone to reopen would have to make sure that they walked into a business that had masks," he said.
"I'm all for masks. if I were in a group of people and I was close...oh I would wear one, I have," he told Fox News.
He previously said that he wouldn't wear a mask despite the Centers for Disease Control advising Americans that they should cover their faces with fabric or non-medical cloth as part of their official guidance in April.
But the President stressed that their advice was "voluntary".
"You can do it, you don't have to do it. I'm choosing not to do it, but some want to do it," he said.
"It's only a recommendation, it is voluntary."
Trump has repeatedly flouted recommendations to wear a mask at his own rallies and public appearances.