“Even as COVID cases rise, mask mandates stay shelved”

David Larsen, associate professor of public health in the Falk College, was quoted in The Associated Press article “Even as COVID cases rise, mask mandates stay shelved.” Larsen, who is an expert on epidemiology, explained that intense mask mandates will likely not be enforced in the U.S. die to lower COVID-19 related death rates. “I don’t anticipate many places, if any, going back to mask mandates unless we see overflowing hospitals — that’s what would drive mask mandates,” Larsen said.