Does the presence of air-conditioning affect the need for the usual protective measures to reduce spread of the coronavirus?
Tuesday, June 23, 2020
By William Boger
Copy link
Copy featured image
NO
The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, in a report released June 22, says that well-maintained air-conditioning units can "securely filter large droplets" containing the coronavirus. On the other hand, smaller droplets can still be spread if air is recirculated. These factors influence specific advice for maintaining equipment to minimize the risks. But they don't alter advice for reducing transmission of the virus, in or out of an air-conditioned space, which is similar to recommendations in the U.S.:
- Physical distancing
- "Meticulous hand hygiene"
- Respiratory "etiquette"
- Appropriate use of face masks
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
FACT BRIEF BY
