(WWLP) – Massachusetts residents are among the most cooperative citizens when it comes to wearing a face mask to prevent the spread of COVID-19, according to a new study.
An analysis conducted by Survival at Home, a website dedicated to survival and disaster preparedness, used geotagging data on Twitter to track several mask-related hashtags over the last 30 days. The hashtags, tracked in each state, included #nomask, #burnyourmask, #nomasks, #antimask, and #iwillnotcomply. Over 150,000 tweets were analyzed.
Top 10 states of anti-mask wearing activity:
- Arizona
- Nevada
- Florida
- Idaho
- Maine
- Missouri
- Wyoming
- South Carolina
- Ohio
- Montana
Early March, Governor Baker ordered all non-essential businesses to pause operations while the Department of Public Health issued a stay-at-home advisory. Residents were advised to stay home and avoid unnecessary travel for two weeks. Over time, the advisory was extended and businesses were required to shut down due to a global increase of COVID-19 cases.
In May, Baker issued a mandatory order to wear face masks or cloth face coverings in public places where social distancing is not possible.
Massachusetts surpassed more than 100,000 cases of COVID-19 since March. According to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center, Hampden County has the highest number of coronavirus cases in western Massachusetts. The county currently has a total of 7,120 cases and 681 COVID-19 related deaths.
