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Why the Economic Value of a Face Mask is $56.14

September 4, 2020 at 2:03 pm EDT by Joshua Holt

The Economist: “Calculations from Goldman Sachs, a bank, suggest that a 15 percentage-point rise in the share of the population that wears masks would reduce the daily growth of cases by about one percentage point. That obviates the need for lockdown measures that would otherwise subtract nearly 5% from GDP.”

“According to our reckoning, an American wearing a mask for a day is helping prevent a fall in GDP of $56.14. Not bad for something that you can buy for about 50 cents apiece.”

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About FIREwire

Joshua Holt is the founder of FIREwire, a site that aggregates personal finance, investing and financial independence stories. He is also the creator of Biglaw Investor.

Joshua spent more than a decade as a corporate lawyer in New York City representing sovereign nations and private equity clients in mergers & acquisitions.

He earned degrees from the University of Arkansas and Boston College, while also spending a year at Cambridge University in the United Kingdom. He lives in Austin with his wife and son.

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