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FWIW, the flimsy cloth type procedure masks, or even a bandanna, is very effective at preventing you from SPREADING the virus. Go full cowboy when you visit Grandma. The better masks (N95 and up) are to actually filter your inhalation to keep you from getting virus in. Even N95 is iffy - better, but far from a total blockade.
Much of the confusion about this is coming from different understandings of the question 'what should I do?' and the false hope that any answer will be for the "...to be totally safe" version. If you want total security, you need to live in a surgical clean room or a remote island where you grow your own food and have ZERO contact; everything else is a probabilistic scenario of 'good enough'. Using a true respirator is great, but it is like wearing those $400 SFI driving shoes with your street clothes - they are fireproof, but without a full suit you still burn up in a fire. If you are in an environment that is contaminated, you'll have virus all over your clothes, hair, and getting into your eyes. So when they say an N95 is overkill, they mean it won't really add to your functional protection much.
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