Plexiglass shields are everywhere, but it’s not clear how much they help
Plexiglass shields have become ubiquitous at offices, grocery stores and restaurants across the country in the coronavirus age. They were even installed on the vice presidential debate stage last week.
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Businesses and workplaces say plexiglass dividers are one way they are keeping people safe against the spread of the coronavirus.
Given that they’re just about everywhere, you may wonder how effective they actually are.
Businesses and workplaces have pointed to plexiglass dividers as one tool they are using to keep people safe against the spread of the virus. But it’s important to know there’s little data to support their effectiveness, and even if there were, the barriers have their limits, according to epidemiologists and aerosol scientists, who study airborne transmission of the virus.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has offered guidance to workplaces to “install physical barriers, such as clear plastic sneeze