Are Face Shields or Goggles Needed in Addition to Masks?
BLITZER: For months, public health officials have stressed the importance of wearing face masks to slow the spread of the coronavirus, but many experts are now urging the use of face shields and eye goggles as well. CNN's Brian Todd has details. Brian, tell us more.</s>BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, four months, Doctors Anthony Fauci and Deborah Birx have imploring us to wear masks. Tonight, there are new questions about the importance of face coverings and potentially whether we need to be going one step further.</s>TODD (voice-over): Dr. Deborah Birx is now recommending adding a face shield in addition to wearing a mask.</s>DR. DEBORAH BIRX, WHITE HOUSE CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE COORDINATOR: The thing about the face shields, we think that that could protect the individuals and that it would decrease the ability for them to touch their eyes and spread viruses as well as those droplets coming towards them. So, there are two different technologies for two different reasons.</s>TODD: Her colleague, Dr. Anthony Fauci, spoke about teachers getting back to classrooms this year, saying, while they don't need to wear medical grade protective equipment --</s>FAUCI: The minimal things you might want to do is you could use just a mask and eye goggles and possibly gloves.</s>TODD: Fauci later clarified that in CNN's town hall, saying he wasn't recommending that all Americans should wear face shields. Still, all this is raising questions about whether masks have been enough to protect us from coronavirus all these months.</s>DR. ANNE RIMOIN, EPIDEMIOLOGIST, UCLA SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH: Masks will provide a very significant measure of protection and what it really is doing is it's protecting everybody else from you. The point here is now that wearing a face shield could provide extra protection.</s>TODD: Experts say, face shields or goggles or especially important for teachers who could be more vulnerable if they deal with younger children in classrooms.</s>PROF. SASKIA POPESCU, INFECTION PREVENTION EXPERT, GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY: We are likely to be in environment where children pull down their masks or not be very complying with them and you might get coughs close to the face. There is concern that you could get respiratory droplets in the eyes.</s>TODD: But what about the rest of us? For that trip to the grocery store, should we be wearing masks and face shields?</s>RIMOIN: The bottom line here is, at minimum, you should be wearing a mask. If you want to add a face shield, goggles, large glasses, that is all going to help reduce spread.</s>TODD: Public health experts acknowledge getting large segments of the U.S. population to wear masks has been a struggle. People have thought the discomfort, the inconvenience, the very principle of it.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a violation of my constitutional rights and my civil rights!</s>TODD: And there could be even more resistance to the appeal to wear a face shield. Many may complain that they are hard to find, bulk at paying the extra money but experts have some reassurance.</s>POPESCU: Really, eye protection and face shields are much more available and they are much cheaper than people realize. A lot of companies are able to print them and make them for a couple of dollars.</s>TODD: But experts say, those of us who think our standard eyeglasses or sunglasses may be able to take the place of face shields or goggles, think again. These standardize eyeglasses, they say, have too many gaps around the sides and above and below. You simply need the tighter fit of face shields -- Wolf.</s>BLITZER: All right. Very interesting. Brian Todd reporting. Thank you. And we have more news just ahead.