Fig. 5: Universal face covering combined with targeted surgical mask deployment reduces total deaths.
From: Face mask use in the general population and optimal resource allocation during the COVID-19 pandemic
Eight face mask policies were compared under scenarios where surgical mask (SM) supplies were limited to cover 10% a, b or 50% c, d of the population, and where surgical mask containment was high (50%, a, c) or low (25%, b, d). Available surgical masks were either not used (gray), provided to symptomatic persons (S; blue), provided to elderly and symptomatic persons (S + E; orange), or distributed randomly to the susceptible population (purple). These policies are compared with and without universal face coverings (FC) for the remaining population (darker and lighter colors, respectively). Surgical masks are assumed to confer 25% protection in all settings, and are three times more effective than face coverings.
