Mask Usage Associated with Higher COVID Mortality: Study

A study of European countries showed a subtle correlation between higher mask usage during the COVID pandemic with higher COVID mortality, the opposite of what one would expect if masks worked to prevent disease.

The peer-reviewed study Correlation Between Mask Compliance and COVID-19 Outcomes in Europe states:

Masking was the single most common non-pharmaceutical intervention in the course of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Most countries have implemented recommendations or mandates regarding the use of masks in public spaces. The aim of this short study was to analyse the correlation between mask usage against morbidity and mortality rates in the 2020-2021 winter in Europe. Data from 35 European countries on morbidity, mortality, and mask usage during a six-month period were analysed and crossed. Mask usage was more homogeneous in Eastern Europe than in Western European countries. Spearman’s correlation coefficients between mask usage and COVID-19 outcomes were either null or positive, depending on the subgroup of countries and type of outcome (cases or deaths). Positive correlations were stronger in Western than in Eastern European countries. These findings indicate that countries with high levels of mask compliance did not perform better than those with low mask usage.

The author made it clear that no causation should be implied from this analysis but the data indicate that mask usage may not be helpful at all in preventing infection or death.