We were down to only a handful of new daily cases, and then there were big outbreaks in meat factories. Now we're back to almost 400/day, numbers growing.
The cotton masks are actually not too bad, as long as they have 2-3 layers, fit well, and are handled correctly. Won't keep everything in, but stop spit droplets when talking, which reduces viral load at the very least. And those seem to be correlated with outcomes https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanres/article/PIIS2213-2600(20)30354-4/fulltext
I have a set of 3 layer masks where the outside is thick cotton and the inside is a flimsy material that can hold electrostatic charge. The few times I actually go outside I wear those. It's better than nothing.