NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A new report says Tennessee counties that haven't required wearing masks in public are on average seeing COVID-19 death rates double or more compared with those that have instituted mandates.
The Vanderbilt University School of Medicine study released Tuesday focused on three groups of counties. Those are early adopters with mask mandates as of July 10; late adopters with mandates implemented after July 10; and those that never adopted a requirement.
Researchers found the early- and late-adopting groups saw declining death rates within a few weeks of requirements, while the group with no requirements continued to see death rate increases.
Researchers stressed that other policies and behaviors are also factors.
