White House diverges from CDC, focuses on aerosol COVID spread

Yesterday the White House published a blog post titled "Let's Clear the Air on COVID," describing the virus as primarily transmitted through aerosols—small, tiny airborne particles.Though some experts around the world have been arguing that point for years, and subsequently advocating for respirator use and enhanced ventilation systems, this is the first time the White House has formally acknowledged that aerosol transmission has been the primary driver of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In doing so, it has turned away from the language used by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)."This is a huge first step," David Michaels, PhD, MPH, epidemiologist and professor at the George Washington University School of Public Health, told CIDRAP News. "It's worth noting there is no mention of droplets in the blog post.

The word is not even in there."Though the CDC has mentioned the possibility of aerosol transmission, it still maintains that droplets are the most common route of COVID-19 transmission."The CDC still says the science [of aerosol spread] is iffy, still underplays it, despite so much evidence to the contrary," said Lisa Brosseau, ScD, a research consultant at the University of Minnesota's Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP), publisher of CIDRAP News."But even as early as March and April of 2020 we had details of how long the virus remains viable in the air, we had examples from China of finding viral RNA in air filters and air exhaust pipes in patient rooms.

It was suggestive it wasn't just on surfaces."Need for optimal respiratory protectionBoth Michaels and Brosseau said the White House blog post stops short of the next obvious conclusion: If aerosol transmission is the dominant way the