The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released a series of new guidelines this week, with advice on topics such as mask use and quarantine after exposure to COVID-19.
The guidelines are a response to threats from new, more contagious virus strains, but also indicate what post-vaccine life can be like in the U.S.
Here are five things you should know about the agency’s advice.
Tighter masks provide better protection
The CDC released on Wednesday a study on how to ensure that the masks offer the best possible protection against coronavirus infections. Evidence has shown that the use of a tight-fitting surgical mask, or a cloth mask over a surgical mask, can significantly decrease the spread of COVID-19.
The study found that transmission of the virus can be reduced by up to 96.5 percent if an infected individual and an uninfected individual wear tight-fitting surgical masks or a combination of surgical mask over cloth.
The best way to ensure a tight fit with a single surgical mask, according to the CDC, is to knot the ear straps and attach to the sides near the face.
The CDC also recommended the use of a mask or strap adjuster, which can fit over a cloth or disposable mask, to ensure that no air enters or leaves the edges.
Two masks are sometimes only better than one
Biden government officials want people to wear masks, but the CDC is not specifically saying that people need to wear a double mask whenever they are out and about.
A combination of cloth over surgery offers the best protection, but any type of facial coverage is better than none.
“What the CDC is saying is, at the very least, wear a mask. OK? That’s what they are saying. Make sure you wear a mask,” Anthony Fauci
Anthony FauciMost of the US workforce continues to work remotely amid the coronavirus: The Hill’s Morning Report survey – Presented by TikTok – Dems close their case; Trump verdict this weekend Overnight Health Care: Biden says the US will have enough doses to vaccinate all Americans by July | Fauci believes that widespread vaccine distribution may be available in April | Long-awaited CDC guidelines on reopening schools arriving tomorrow MORE, the country’s leading infectious disease specialist, said during a recent interview with NBC’s “Today” program.
“So you want it to fit better, so one of the ways to do that, if you want, is to put a cloth mask on top … That’s all they are saying,” added Fauci.
During a call with reporters discussing the study, the CDC Director Rochelle WalenskyRochelle WalenskyOvernight Health Care: CDC asks schools to reopen with precautions | Cuomo faces growing investigation into deaths in nursing homes COVID-19 | Biden officials begin to terminate Medicaid’s job requirements. CDC asks schools to reopen with precautions. Montana Governor Lifts State Mask Mandate MORE emphasized that the agency’s orientation on masks was not changing.
“I want to make it clear that this new scientific data released today does not change the specific recommendations on who should wear a mask or when to wear it, but it does provide new information on why wearing a tight fitting mask is so important to protect you and others” said Walensky.
However, the CDC has also warned that double masking does not always offer the best protection. For example, folding disposable masks will not help to improve the fit, nor will you combine any type of mask with a KN95 respirator.
New strains of viruses increase the need for safe practices
The mask’s recommendations come as new, more contagious strains of the coronavirus are being discovered in several states across the country.
But the emphasis on tight-fitting masks highlights the position of health experts and administrative staff: people shouldn’t have to change their behavior just because there are new variants of the virus.
Mutations that lead to variants can only occur if the virus is able to spread and replicate. If you stop the spread, you stop the risk of a new mutation.
Until there is widespread immunity, people are advised to continue wearing masks, keep physical distance and avoid large crowds, especially indoors – essentially the same advice that experts have given since last spring.
“So, the way to stop this is to stop transmitting the virus with masking,” said CDC medical director John Brooks, during an interview on SiriusXM’s “Doctor Radio Reports” program.
Officials are warning against lifting restrictions
States and cities across the country are moving forward with lifting restrictions on coronavirus, including revoking the application of masks, allowing meals in closed spaces and increasing limits on internal capacity.
But leading health officials have kindly suggested that while cases, deaths and hospitalizations have dropped, now is not the time to slow down mitigation efforts.
“These variants are a threat,” said Brooks. “This is not unexpected … but we are at a point where we cannot let our guard down yet. I really think that now is not necessarily the best time for some communities in America to be withdrawing these masking warrants, if you are.”
The variant first found in the UK is at least 40% more infectious than current strains and is expected to become the dominant variant in the United States as early as next month. A variant first identified in South Africa is also spreading.
If the cases of these variants start to emerge, it could overburden hospitals and deal a significant blow to current mitigation efforts.
Walensky also called on states not to lift restrictions yet.
“We still have to control this pandemic. We still have this emerging threat of variants, and I would simply discourage any of these activities. We really need to keep all mitigation measures at stake here if we are really going to get control of this pandemic,” she told reporters in an interview on Monday.
Vaccines are working
A positive update that the CDC did this week is that people who have been vaccinated do not need to be quarantined if they are exposed to someone with COVID-19.
According to the updated guidelines, most individuals who have been fully vaccinated for at least two weeks do not need quarantine after exposure to someone with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 if they do not have any symptoms.
The message is: if you have been vaccinated, we know that you are protected against symptomatic infections.
More importantly, the guidance signals that the CDC is recognizing for the first time that the vaccine can also prevent people from spreading the disease.
While people without symptoms are still at risk of spreading the coronavirus, the CDC said that “symptomatic and pre-symptomatic transmission” has a greater role in transmission than purely asymptomatic transmission.
This information can also help employers and employees as people begin to transition back to work on the spot. The benefits of not forcing people to block for two weeks for possible exposure can outweigh the risks of transmission.
One caveat, however, is that the CDC says that it is not known how long the protection lasts, meaning that people who have had their last injection three months or more should still be quarantined if they are exposed.