The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has eased guidelines on wearing masks outdoors, saying people who are fully vaccinated no longer need to cover their faces unless they are in a big crowd of strangers.
The new guidance, issued Tuesday, represents the next step on the road back to normal after the viral outbreak that has killed over 570,000 people in the U.S., including 155 in Bartholomew County, The Associated Press reported.
According to the new guidance, people — whether they are fully vaccinated or not — do not have to wear masks outdoors when they walk, bike or run alone or with people they live with. They can also go maskless in small outdoor gatherings with fully vaccinated people, according to wire reports.
But unvaccinated people — defined as those who have yet to receive both doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or the one-shot Johnson & Johnson formula — should wear masks at small outdoor gatherings that include other unvaccinated people, according to wire reports. They also should keep their faces covered when dining at outdoor restaurants with friends from multiple households.
And everyone, fully vaccinated or not, should keep wearing masks at crowded outdoor events such as concerts or sporting events.
The agency continues to recommend masks at indoor public places, such as hair salons, restaurants, shopping centers, gyms, museums and movie theaters, saying that is still the safer course even for vaccinated people.
The CDC, which has been cautious in its guidance during the crisis, had previously been advising people in the U.S. to wear masks outdoors if they were within 6 feet of each other.
Federal health officials have said the new guidance should be a model for states in setting their mask-wearing requirements, according to wire reports.
Locally, health officials are encouraging people to follow the new guidelines.
“It’s good to have some suggestions and guidance from the CDC in these instances,” said Dr. Brian Niedbalski, Bartholomew County health officer. “I think most people continue to use common sense concerning when masks are needed. It makes sense to wear them if you are in an environment with a larger crowd or surrounded by strangers who may not be vaccinated. At the local level, I will encourage people to wear masks in these situations.”
CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky told the AP on Tuesday that the decision to issue updated guidance was driven by rising vaccination numbers; declines in COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths; and research showing that less than 10% of confirmed instances of transmission of the virus occurred outdoors.
Some experts portrayed the relaxed guidance as a reward and a motivator for more people to get vaccinated, according to wire reports.
“I agree that we can look at these guidelines as a ‘reward’ for vaccinated individuals, and we should feel safer in these situations if vaccinated,” Niedbalski said. “I truly don’t know if this is, or will be, a motivational tool for unvaccinated people.”
The change from the CDC came as more than half of U.S. adults — or about 140 million people — have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, and more than a third have been fully vaccinated, according to wire reports.
As of Tuesday morning, a total of 31,963 Bartholomew County residents had received at least one dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines, or 38% of the county’s total population, according to the Indiana State Department of Health.
Additionally, 22,797 Bartholomew County residents were fully vaccinated as of Tuesday morning, 27% of the population. That includes 1,053 local residents who had received the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
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Visit www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/fully-vaccinated-guidance.html for more information about the new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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