NEW YORK: Fully vaccinated Americans can meet with other vaccinated people indoors without wearing a mask or social detachment, according to long-awaited guidance from federal health officials.
The recommendations also say that vaccinated people can meet in the same way – in a single household – with people considered to be at low risk for serious illnesses, as in the case of vaccinated grandparents visiting healthy children and grandchildren.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced the guidance on Monday.
The guidance was designed to meet growing demand, as more adults are being vaccinated and wondering if it gives them greater freedom to visit relatives, travel or do other things as they did before the Covid-19 pandemic sweeps the world in last year .
“With more and more people vaccinated every day, we are starting to turn a corner,” said CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky.
During a press conference on Monday, she called the guideline a “first step” to restore normalcy to the way people come together. She said that more activities would be allowed for vaccinated individuals once the number of cases and deaths decreased, more Americans were vaccinated and more science emerged about the ability of those who were vaccinated to obtain and spread the virus.
The CDC continues to recommend that fully vaccinated people still wear tight-fitting masks, avoid large gatherings and physically distance themselves from others when they are in public. The CDC also advised vaccinated people to get tested if they develop symptoms that could be related to Covid-19.
Authorities say a person is considered fully vaccinated two weeks after receiving the last necessary dose of the vaccine. About 31 million Americans – or just about 9% of the US population – have been fully vaccinated with a Covid-19 vaccine authorized by the federal government so far, according to the CDC.
The authorized doses of vaccines were made available for the first time in December and were products that required two doses with an interval of weeks. But since January, a small but growing number of Americans have been fully vaccinated and have asked questions such as: Do I still need to wear a mask? Can I go to a bar now? Can I finally see my grandchildren? The guidance was “welcome news for a nation that is understandably tired of the pandemic and is looking forward to returning to normal activities safely,” said Dr. Richard Besser, president and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and former interim director of the CDC.
“I hope this new guideline will give the impetus for everyone to be vaccinated when they can and give states the patience to follow the public health roadmap needed to reopen their economies and communities safely,” said Besser in a statement.
But Dr. Leana Wen called the guidance “too cautious”. The CDC has not changed its travel recommendations, which discourages unnecessary travel and requires testing a few days before travel. This can seem confusing to vaccinated people who want to visit their family across the country or abroad.
The new guideline also says nothing about going to restaurants or other places, although governors are lifting restrictions on business, said Wen, an emergency physician and professor of public health at George Washington University who was a former Baltimore health commissioner.
“CDC is missing a great opportunity to link vaccination status to reopening guidelines. By leaving with such a limited orientation, they are losing the window to influence state and national politics, ”said Wen, by e-mail.
The CDC’s guidance does not refer to people who may have achieved some level of immunity because they are infected and recovering from the coronavirus.
The recommendations also say that vaccinated people can meet in the same way – in a single household – with people considered to be at low risk for serious illnesses, as in the case of vaccinated grandparents visiting healthy children and grandchildren.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced the guidance on Monday.
The guidance was designed to meet growing demand, as more adults are being vaccinated and wondering if it gives them greater freedom to visit relatives, travel or do other things as they did before the Covid-19 pandemic sweeps the world in last year .
“With more and more people vaccinated every day, we are starting to turn a corner,” said CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky.
During a press conference on Monday, she called the guideline a “first step” to restore normalcy to the way people come together. She said that more activities would be allowed for vaccinated individuals once the number of cases and deaths decreased, more Americans were vaccinated and more science emerged about the ability of those who were vaccinated to obtain and spread the virus.
The CDC continues to recommend that fully vaccinated people still wear tight-fitting masks, avoid large gatherings and physically distance themselves from others when they are in public. The CDC also advised vaccinated people to get tested if they develop symptoms that could be related to Covid-19.
Authorities say a person is considered fully vaccinated two weeks after receiving the last necessary dose of the vaccine. About 31 million Americans – or just about 9% of the US population – have been fully vaccinated with a Covid-19 vaccine authorized by the federal government so far, according to the CDC.
The authorized doses of vaccines were made available for the first time in December and were products that required two doses with an interval of weeks. But since January, a small but growing number of Americans have been fully vaccinated and have asked questions such as: Do I still need to wear a mask? Can I go to a bar now? Can I finally see my grandchildren? The guidance was “welcome news for a nation that is understandably tired of the pandemic and is looking forward to returning to normal activities safely,” said Dr. Richard Besser, president and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and former interim director of the CDC.
“I hope this new guideline will give the impetus for everyone to be vaccinated when they can and give states the patience to follow the public health roadmap needed to reopen their economies and communities safely,” said Besser in a statement.
But Dr. Leana Wen called the guidance “too cautious”. The CDC has not changed its travel recommendations, which discourages unnecessary travel and requires testing a few days before travel. This can seem confusing to vaccinated people who want to visit their family across the country or abroad.
The new guideline also says nothing about going to restaurants or other places, although governors are lifting restrictions on business, said Wen, an emergency physician and professor of public health at George Washington University who was a former Baltimore health commissioner.
“CDC is missing a great opportunity to link vaccination status to reopening guidelines. By leaving with such a limited orientation, they are losing the window to influence state and national politics, ”said Wen, by e-mail.
The CDC’s guidance does not refer to people who may have achieved some level of immunity because they are infected and recovering from the coronavirus.