Fully-Vaccinated Americans Can Stop Wearing Masks, CDC Says

We’re entering a new phase of the coronavirus pandemic, which has claimed 583,000 lives in the United States and over 3 million worldwide.

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) announced on May 13 that it no longer recommends masks for Americans who are fully vaccinated, which means you’ve received both doses of the approved Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or one shot of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and allotted two weeks for the vaccine to take effect. This comes just a couple of weeks after the CDC first eased up on outdoor mask mandates for fully vaccinated citizens. 

Now, it looks like those who fit the bill can go maskless outdoors and indoors with just a few exceptions. “If you are fully vaccinated against #COVID19, you can resume activities without wearing a mask or staying six feet apart, except where required by federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, incl. local business and workplace guidance,” the organization’s official account tweeted, along with a link to further guidelines.

That’s not the only update for folks carrying around vaccine cards. “Fully vaccinated people can refrain from testing following a known exposure unless they are residents or employees of a correctional or detention facility or a homeless shelter,” the website also states. 

“Anyone who is fully vaccinated can participate in indoor and outdoor activities, large or small, without wearing a mask or physical distancing,” CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said during a White House briefing, per ABC News. “If you are fully vaccinated, you can start doing the things that you had stopped doing because of the pandemic. We have all longed for this moment when we can get back to some sense of normalcy.”

According to Politico health reporter David Lim, Walensky advised those who have received their second dose to wait for two weeks before ceasing to mask up in public.  That’s crucial!