I know there's not strong evidence that cloth masks stop infection, but given their low cost and ease of cleaning (2 minutes in boiling water), why hasn't everyone been issued with one (or given plans to make one) and been told to wear them? Bad optics?
The federal government is now lifting liability restrictions on construction masks. You should see more of these in Health Care situations as they are much more widely available. [1]
"N100 and P100 Masks for Protection against Avian Flu, Swine Flu and Other Diseases The Centers for Disease Control tested N100 and P100 masks for their efficacy against avian flu, swine flu and other contagious diseases and found them to provide superior protection. Since N100 respirators and P100 respirators are capable of blocking the majority of airborne hazards, people often use them to prevent the spread of dangerous diseases." [2]
[1]: https://techcrunch.com/2020/03/17/white-house-asks-construct... [2]: https://www.envirosafetyproducts.com/respirators-safety-prot...
Costs? Just imagine how you would do it if you were in the government.
A mask on its own may be cheap but for a whole nation? They have to be manufactured, where from? They would have to be distributed, how? You'd need to send everyone at least 2 of them. That's over a hundred million of the things.
Okay, so lets imagine you were able to find a manufacturer of a hundred million cotton masks and were able to buy them, and were able to send them to every household in the country. What should you imagine next? Why should anyone wear them if they are not being serious now? What should you do as a government to get people to wear them? Shouldn't be against the law not to wear one? Who would enforce that? How much publicity would you spend, who would write the advice and how would you do broadcast it? Do the scientists agree with this? Wouldn't social distancing work just as well? Could people feel more safe wearing them and break social distancing? There are more questions you could put here with some imagination....
I feel we are panicking and reaching out for any stricter solution. I'm seeing many left wing people on social media in the UK call for stricter approaches, but that is partly to oppose the government whatever the cost and partly fear. How about the army on the streets enforcing curfew? That would be effective and probably quicker than cotton masks. How about mass surveillance? That's just digital and doesn't need anything manufactured, nor paying the army. We can easily and happily give up our rights and liberties when we are scared - after all we are saving lives and so many people are lacking seriousness.
I feel like that answers your question. They're more useful if you think you're already infected and want to avoid spreading it by breathing/coughing/sneezing on people. You're right in the sense that it's probably reasonable to assume you're already infected (regardless of whether or not you're showing symptoms), but humans are notoriously irrational about these sorts of things, caring more about "I hope I don't get sick" than "I hope I don't get random people sick".
Combine that with them having been one of the first things sold out in most stores (alongside hand sanitizer and toilet paper) and it shouldn't be especially surprising that people elect to go without.
Unfortunately, it's all a guess there are no studies on the effect of wearing a mask.
There are so many questions that have no answer now. Such as: How long can we wear them? What is the best material? Would people follow best practices or would it make it worse if they don't? Can we make enough for everyone given the emergency? What's the best design? How many do we need for each person? and on and on...
I was pretty sure that it is sufficient, then I noticed that at home and in restaurants the habit of sharing plates while eating persists.
It seems to me that it enables people to 'share saliva'. Many, but not all, rather skillfully use their chopsticks to only take whatever they want, avoiding contact with anything else. However a chopstick is often in contact with food remaining in the plate, especially whenever there is sauce or liquid, or with the plate itself.
How comes this practice doesn't seem to enforce virus propagation?
In this clip the speaker argues that masks should be saved for health workers and those with symptoms.