Vaccinated Americans now may go without masks in most places, the CDC said
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Re: Vaccinated Americans now may go without masks in most places, the CDC said
#2There is a non-paywalled story here. https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/fully-vaccinated-americans-r...
Neither the NYT nor ABC stories have links to the actual guidance, and I don't see anything about this on cdc.gov. I guess this was embargoed and the story was released before cdc got around to publishing the guidance.
Update: Guidance is now at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/fully-vac...
Re: Vaccinated Americans now may go without masks in most places, the CDC said
#3It’s good to give better incentives for people to be vaccinated, as many have urged for some time.
I worry this carrot isn’t tied to an adequate stick - the unvaccinated can simply go without a mask regardless of their status. Will this move actually counter our slowing vaccination rates?
Re: Vaccinated Americans now may go without masks in most places, the CDC said
#4The CDC really botched this one. Nobody will be able to take them seriously because either a) their previous guidance was correct and they only updated guidance to encourage more people to get vaccinated, or b) their previous guidance was wrong. Either way, it makes them look foolish and destroys whatever credibility still remained in the institution.
Re: Vaccinated Americans now may go without masks in most places, the CDC said
#5Vaccines still aren't 100%. This is bad advice from the CDC. It will only lead to anti-masker/vaxxers using this as an excuse for not wearing a mask. Even the fully vaccinated should be wearing a mask around other people. 94%/97% is not 100%.
edit: Japan is a good example for how masks have drastically reduced the number of infected due to mask culture. Japan has half the US population and still isn't vaccinating the general public. Even the spikes in Japan are tiny compared to the US due to mask usage. Japan is mostly open, trains are still packed, shops are still filled with people. Masks work and should still be worn once vaccinated.
edit 2: good luck.
Re: Vaccinated Americans now may go without masks in most places, the CDC said
#6I’ve been in the US throughout this pandemic, and I’ve had to take it extremely seriously because of vulnerable people I live with. I’m glad to be vaccinated and for my life (and my family’s) to be returning to normal.
I expect that I’ll continue wearing a mask from time to time even years from now if it becomes socially acceptable, because I like both the anonymity, and the wonders it does for my seasonal allergies. I’d also like to be able to wear a mask when I’m feeling ill in the future without people reacting strangely.
I’m definitely going to remain wearing a mask in stores and around people for the time being as my life returns to normal. Right now, not doing so is a strong social signal that you’re a special kind of belligerent asshole that probably hasn’t been vaccinated, and wants to pick a fight, and make everyone around you feel unsafe. It’s amazing to see how often this kind of public chest thumping is happening, and I feel terrible for the customer service employees who have to deal with it. It’s also been shocking how the changed political situation has galvanised certain other views. Several of my neighbours (in fairly gentrified suburbs) have replaced their American flags with trump flags, and engage in the same kind of angry belligerence in nearly all their activities. I don’t know how we deal with the difference in views at this point. It’s very obvious that there are two worlds in the US, and they’re drifting ever further apart, with the interfaces between them becoming seriously strained.
Unfortunately guidance like this is only going to give anti-mask/anti-vax people more ammunition to be belligerent in public.
Re: Vaccinated Americans now may go without masks in most places, the CDC said
#7Vaccines still aren't 100%. This is bad advice from the CDC. It will only lead to anti-masker/vaxxers using this as an excuse for not wearing a mask. Even the fully vaccinated should be wearing a mask around other people. 94%/97% is not 100%. edit: Japan is a good example for how masks have drastically reduced the number of infected due to mask culture. Japan has half the US population and still isn't vaccinating the…
The average person can expect to be in three to four car accidents during their lifetime. I'm still driving around (vaxxed, not belligerent, happy to mask for the time being).
Re: Vaccinated Americans now may go without masks in most places, the CDC said
#8The CDC really botched this one. Nobody will be able to take them seriously because either a) their previous guidance was correct and they only updated guidance to encourage more people to get vaccinated, or b) their previous guidance was wrong. Either way, it makes them look foolish and destroys whatever credibility still remained in the institution.
No, they didn’t.
The CDC explained that we didn’t know if people could be contagious after being vaccinated. Not sure where this stands.
Now most people who want the vaccine will soon have it but it looks like lots of holdouts.
So, now we have a carrot and stick. No mask required and people are now on their own if they choose to skip it
Re: Vaccinated Americans now may go without masks in most places, the CDC said
#9Its not black and white - we're not going for 100% security. Masks never did that anyway, and it wasn't the point in wearing them. The point was to change 'R0' to less than 1, so the epidemic wouldn't grow geometrically and swamp the healthcare system.
It's quite reasonable to say that vaccinated people are less likely to spread the disease than say, an at-risk person wearing a mask. If those two are commensurate, then sure vaccinated people can go maskless.
There are social reasons to keep wearing a mask of course. To reduce confusion about who's safe and who's just being negligent. I still wear one in public, and I've been vaccinated.
It's popular to back-seat drive during difficult times, and point out gleefully when somebody isn't 100% in line with one's own understanding. It's largely not constructive, and causes more upset and confusion. The best advice is, do your part to reduce infection risk. And stop stirring the pot.
Re: Vaccinated Americans now may go without masks in most places, the CDC said
#10Vaccines still aren't 100%. This is bad advice from the CDC. It will only lead to anti-masker/vaxxers using this as an excuse for not wearing a mask. Even the fully vaccinated should be wearing a mask around other people. 94%/97% is not 100%. edit: Japan is a good example for how masks have drastically reduced the number of infected due to mask culture. Japan has half the US population and still isn't vaccinating the…
The average person can expect to be in three to four car accidents during their lifetime. I'm still driving around (vaxxed, not belligerent, happy to mask for the time being).
That is great. But still, vaccinated people shouldn't be told that they cannot get infected. There is this weird misconception floating around that just because we get vaccinated we are somehow immune to covid-19. That is a dangerous and misguided belief.