Why did we recommend the community use of cloth masks early in the pandemic?

We now have studies showing the effects of mask mandates on growth of the pandemic in the US and in Germany; the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation in Seattle projected on Sept. 3 that an increase in mask usage from the current 60 per cent to 95 per cent, combined with enhanced local social distancing as needed, would reduce global deaths by three-quarters of a million people before the end of 2020.uce global deaths by three-quarters of a million people before the end of 2020.

Before we had this information, we made an argument based on the assessment of risk and benefit under uncertainty, in keeping with the general practice of evidence-based medicine, you can read this short published piece here.