More than a half million people in the United States could die from COVID-19 by the end of February next year, but around 130,000 of those lives could be saved if everybody were to wear masks, according to estimates from a modeling study.
The estimates, from a study by researchers at the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, show that with few effective COVID-19 treatment options and no vaccines yet available, the U.S. faces "a continued COVID-19 public health challenge through the winter."
"We are heading into a very substantial fall/winter surge," said IHME director Chris Murray, who co-led the research.