Mask Off: Researching Face Mask Rumors

37 Articles

Much has been said on the subject of masks since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

Snopes Staff

Published 14 May 2021

Image via The White House, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

When the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced that fully vaccinated people no longer needed to wear masks except in certain cases in May 2021, it sparked a flurry of questions that felt a little bit like deja vu. There’s been misinformation and malicious disinformation around mask usage since the beginning of the pandemic, from hoax studies to false claims about health issues — and Team Snopes has checked many of them.

Here they are, all in one place.

Can Everyone Who’s Fully Vaccinated Against COVID-19 Go Anywhere Maskless Now? If you're planning to travel or visit a doctor, the CDC says cover your face...

Are These Claims About the Effectiveness of Face Masks True? Widely shared posts from the summer of 2020, purportedly citing the CDC and U.S. Occupational...

Did a ‘Stanford/NIH’ Study Conclude Masks Don’t Work? Really depends on how you define these words: Stanford, NIH, Study, Conclude, Mask, and Work.

Can You Get Legionnaires’ Disease from Face Masks? Rumors about masks are getting more creative, but health experts still recommend wearing cloth face...

Is It Dangerous to Wear a COVID-19 Protective Mask for Too Long? Prolonged usage of certain masks can cause some health concerns.

Should Fabric Masks Be Sanitized in a Microwave? Experts do not recommend heating up your personal protective gear like leftovers.

Are Thieves Handing Out Masks With Chemicals That Make You Pass Out? Memes exploiting fear over the ongoing coronavirus pandemic have been widespread on social media.

Does Farting Negate the Use of Masks to Prevent COVID-19? It's natural to pass gas, but please don't pass along this meme.

Do ‘Disposable Blue Face Masks’ Contain Asbestos-Like Substance? A specific disposable mask that contains a coating of graphene was distributed by officials in...

Do These Photos Show Staph Infections Caused by Face Masks? "Having a staph infection [from wearing a face mask] is a pretty rare occurrence, and...

Will Red or Blue Masks Be Required By ‘National Mask Code’? A flyer went viral claiming unvaccinated people must wear red masks and face a range...

Did CDC Report ‘Majority’ of People Who Contracted COVID-19 Wore Masks? U.S. President Donald Trump amplified misunderstanding when he claimed on live television that “85% of...

CDC Says Masks Must Fit Tightly – And Two Are Better Than One Everyone still needs to be wearing masks as much as possible. So how do you...

Is This a Valid Face Mask Exemption Card? Exemption cards citing the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) encouraged people to defy face mask...

Can People Without Disabilities Use an ADA ‘Mask Loophole’ in Stores? For the record, Americans without disabilities are not protected by the federal Americans with Disabilities...

Did CDC Recommend Everyone Wear Tin Foil Face Masks To Prevent COVID-19? Move over tin foil hats. Tin foil face masks are here!

Did Tucker Carlson Say Forcing Kids To Wear Masks Outside Is ‘Child Abuse’? The Fox News host has also said seeing a vaccinated person wearing a mask outside...

Rep. Joseph Chaplik made statements regarding HIV and wearing masks.

Did Arizona GOP Rep. Ask ‘If Masks Work, Why Weren’t They Needed in AIDS Crisis?’ Joseph Chaplik was met with bemusement after remarks he made while advocating for a bill...

Cloth Masks Do Protect the Wearer When you wear a mask – even a cloth mask – you typically are exposed...

Did Biden Violate His Own Mask Mandate? This argument appears to be based on a willful misunderstanding of Biden's new mask policy.

Did Boys in China Die After Wearing Face Masks During Physical Exercise? English-language news outlets shared a set of reports that emerged from Hunan and Henan provinces...

Yelling at People Who Aren’t Wearing Masks Won’t Work People can better convince others to wear masks if they share the fear, loss and...

Does Your Face Mask Protect You or Other People? The distinction between face coverings designed to protect the wearer, and those that may protect...

Did Fauci Blame Mask Use for 1918 ‘Spanish Flu’ Deaths? Masks definitely aren't responsible for mass deaths today.

Does a 1994 Denver Airport Mural Show a Masked Global Population? The problem with most online "predictions" is that they seem to occur after an event...

Is US Government Requiring Pantyhose Worn Over Masks? During the pandemic, more people are looking for ways to make their cloth masks more...

Are ‘Neck Gaiters’ Worse at COVID-19 Transmission Than Foregoing Masks Altogether? Rumors claimed that using neck gaiters instead of a mask may actually increase the transmission...

How Did Mask Wearing Become So Politicized? Not wearing a mask has become a political act, even though masks slow the spread...

Does ‘ABA’ Letter Prove Anyone Making COVID-19 Masks Can Be Sued? A letter falsely attributed to the Ohio State Bar Association made some questionable claims.

Was Rand Paul ‘Right’ All Along About the CDC Mask Mandate? The U.S. senator rejoiced at revised guidelines allowing fully vaccinated people to relax mask wearing...

How To Make Sure Your Mask Maximizes Protection Whether or not you agree with a mandate to wear a mask, many of us...

The Constitution Doesn’t Have a Problem with Mask Mandates It is not always clear why anti-maskers think government orders requiring face coverings in public...

Did a Couple Wear Swastika Masks to Walmart? It was not the first such incident reported during the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.

Did an Oregon County Say Only White People Must Wear COVID-19 Masks? Oregon Gov. Kate Brown did issue an order requiring people wear masks in seven counties,...

Did the US Surgeon General Recommend the Public Not Wear Masks? Jerome Adams' comments from early 2020 were re-shared and went viral months after he changed...

What to Wear: Feds’ Mixed Messages on Masks Sow Confusion Forgive the American people if they’re in a fog about face masks. President Donald Trump...

Government Investigating Massive Counterfeit N95 Mask Scam Federal authorities are investigating a massive counterfeit N95 mask operation in which fake 3M masks...