Question: I have a question regarding wearing a mask at work. Should someone still wear their mask all day even if they have their own office room and are not coming in contact with anyone else during the day?
Answer: The basic guidance is, “Everyone 2 years of age and older should wear a mask in public settings and when they are around people who do not live in their household.” The scenario you described– being alone in your office (assuming 4 walls and a door)– does not fit the criteria of being either a public setting or a place where you’re around other people. You do not need to wear a mask. Read on for more information.
Masking while alone: While CDC has a number of guidelines, including “Employer Information for Office Buildings,” I couldn’t find any CDC guidance that directly answered your question. I did, however, find a number of state/local guidelines and FAQs that directly address this issue. For example, Pennsylvania’s Department of Health states, “Everyone must wear a face covering when indoors, irrespective of physical distance, however, if a person is working alone, and has no expectation of being around other persons, they do not need to do so….”Working alone” means when a person is separated from interaction with other people with little or no expectation of in-person interruption. Examples include:.. A lone worker inside an office with four walls and a door…” The Minnesota Department of Health offers similar guidelines, and so does the Government of San Francisco. This is not a comprehensive list, but I’m sharing these various examples from various places to highlight how common this question is and how similar the guidance is.
One caveat: If you have founded concerns about the adequacy of the ventilation system that your office building is using, you may still want to wear a mask even when you’re alone in your office space. To my knowledge, reopened office buildings are following enhanced ventilation protocols, so this caveat is likely inapplicable to most folks. I raise it because we know that SARS-CoV-2 can be spread via airborne transmission, including from inadequate ventilation or air handling that allows for a build-up of suspended small respiratory droplets and particles. We also know that masks help keep your respiratory droplets from spreading to others and keep others’ droplets from spreading to you.