But by and large, Americans are still breathing the indoor air that set the stage for the pandemic. “Everyone just does the minimum,” said Shelly Miller, an aerosol expert at the University of ...

“If we’re not outside, then we don’t make money," said a pedicab driver in Central Park, echoing the view of many workers who pressed on despite warnings about harmful air quality.

“People who have healthy breathing, people who don’t have any respiratory issues, they can usually work outside during the orange code. When it gets to red is when they should take precaution,” ...