Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
CDC Says Many Americans Can Now Go Outside Without a Mask
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 4 years ago on
April 28, 2021

Share

NEW YORK โ€” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eased its guidelines Tuesday on the wearing of masks outdoors, saying fully vaccinated Americans donโ€™t need to cover their faces anymore unless they are in a big crowd of strangers.

And those who are unvaccinated can go outside without masks in some situations, too.

โ€˜The Road Back to Normalโ€™

The new guidance represents another carefully calibrated step on the road back to normal from the coronavirus outbreak that has killed over 570,000 people in U.S.

For most of the past year, the CDC had been advising Americans to wear masks outdoors if they are within 6 feet of one another.

โ€œToday, I hope, is a day when we can take another step back to the normalcy of before,โ€ CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said. โ€œOver the past year, we have spent a lot of time telling Americans what you canโ€™t do. Today, I am going to tell you some of the things you can do, if you are fully vaccinated.โ€

The change comes as more than half of U.S. adults โ€” or about 140 million people โ€” have received at least one dose of vaccine, and more than a third have been fully vaccinated.

Walensky said the decision was driven by rising vaccination numbers; declines in COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths; and research showing that less than 10% of documented instances of transmission of the virus happened outdoors.

Dr. Mike Saag, an infectious disease expert at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, welcomed the change.

โ€œItโ€™s the return of freedom,โ€ Saag said. โ€œItโ€™s the return of us being able to do normal activities again. Weโ€™re not there yet, but weโ€™re on the exit ramp. And thatโ€™s a beautiful thing.โ€

Motivation for More People to Get Vaccinated

Some experts portrayed the relaxed guidance as a reward and a motivator for more people to get vaccinated โ€” a message President Joe Biden sounded, too.

โ€œThe bottom line is clear: If youโ€™re vaccinated, you can do more things, more safely, both outdoors as well as indoors,โ€ Biden said. โ€œSo for those who havenโ€™t gotten their vaccinations yet, especially if youโ€™re younger or thinking you donโ€™t need it, this is another great reason to go get vaccinated now.โ€

The CDC, which has been cautious in its guidance during the crisis, essentially endorsed what many Americans have already been doing over the past several weeks.

The CDC says that whether they are fully vaccinated or not, people do not have to wear masks outdoors when they walk, bike or run alone or with members of their household. They can also go maskless in small outdoor gatherings with fully vaccinated people.

But unvaccinated people โ€” defined as those who have yet to receive both doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or the one-shot Johnson & Johnson formula โ€” should wear masks at small outdoor gatherings that include other unvaccinated people, the CDC says. 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 CDC says.

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.

โ€œRight now itโ€™s very hard to tease apart who is vaccinated,โ€ Walensky explained.

Guidelines a Model for States to Set Their Own Requirements

She said the CDC guidance should be a model for states in setting their mask-wearing requirements.

The advice to the unvaccinated applies to adults and children alike, according to the CDC. None of the COVID-19 vaccines in use in the U.S. is authorized for children under 16.

โ€œThe biggest thing that it helps us is our mental health,โ€ said Tim Stephens, a 52-year-old software salesman in Birmingham, Alabama, who suffered a bout of COVID-19 and has since gotten vaccinated.

โ€œTo be able to feel like weโ€™re turning the corner and can confidently go out and experience life and do a lot of the things that we did before COVID became an acronym in our world. Itโ€™s one more step in the process of moving beyond this.โ€

In Oxford, Nebraska, population 800, hardly anyone wears a mask, and the school district dropped its mask mandate last month. Superintendent Bryce Jorgensen said maybe 10 of the 370 students are still covering their faces.

โ€œWhat goes on in other states is what goes on in other states,โ€ Jorgensen said. โ€œYou just canโ€™t compare Chicago to Oxford, Nebraska. Things are just different.โ€

Transmission Risk Low for Most Outdoor Events

Dr. Babak Javid, a physician-scientist at the University of California, San Francisco, said the new CDC guidance is sensible.

โ€œIn the vast majority of outdoor scenarios, transmission risk is low,โ€ Javid said.

Javid has favored outdoor mask-wearing requirements because he believes they increase indoor mask-wearing, but he said Americans can understand the relative risks and make good decisions.

He added: โ€œIโ€™m looking forward to mask-free existence.โ€

โ€œThe timing is right because we now have a fair amount of data about the scenarios where transmission occurs,โ€ said Mercedes Carnethon, a professor and vice chair of preventive medicine at Northwestern Universityโ€™s Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago.

Whatโ€™s more, she said, โ€œthe additional freedoms may serve as a motivatorโ€ for people to get vaccinated.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

UP NEXT

USCโ€™s JuJu Watkins Named AP Player of the Year After Historic Sophomore Season

Fresno Burial Ceremony to Honor Five Abandoned Babies Set for Saturday

2 hours ago

Visalia Man Arrested for Soliciting Sex From Minor in Kingsburg

2 hours ago

LA County Reaches $4 Billion Agreement to Settle Sexual Abuse Claims at Juvenile Facilities

LOS ANGELES โ€” Los Angeles County has reached a $4 billion agreement to settle nearly 7,000 claims of sexual abuse in juvenile facilities sin...

24 minutes ago

24 minutes ago

LA County Reaches $4 Billion Agreement to Settle Sexual Abuse Claims at Juvenile Facilities

26 minutes ago

Fresno Man Sentenced to 14 Years in Prison for Deadly Marijuana DUI Crash

28 minutes ago

Judge Says US Must Return Maryland Man Who Was Mistakenly Deported to El Salvador Prison

2 hours ago

These Fresno First-Graders Are Topping Their Peers in Reading

A public burial ceremony will be held Saturday, April 5, 2025, in Fresno to honor five abandoned infants, organized by Garden of Innocence โ€“ Fresno County. (Garden of Innocence)
2 hours ago

Fresno Burial Ceremony to Honor Five Abandoned Babies Set for Saturday

Uriel Alcala Rios, 25, was arrested for soliciting sex from a 14-year-old girl on Thursday, March 27, 2025. (Kingsburg PD)
2 hours ago

Visalia Man Arrested for Soliciting Sex From Minor in Kingsburg

4 hours ago

Camalah Saleh Cruises to Win in Stormy Fresno State Student Elections

President Donald Trump waves as he arrives at the Trump International Golf Club, Friday, April 4, 2025, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP/Alex Brandon)
4 hours ago

Trump Goes Golfing While Stock Market Chunks

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend