But the agency’s board is likely to disappoint many who hoped that the increasing rate of vaccinations would allow some common restrictions to be relaxed immediately for vaccinated people.
The document will include a series of scenarios for Americans to consider, including where they socialize, who they can relate to and what to consider when making plans. It will also include a section on travel.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, medical director for President Joe Biden, as well as the director of the CDC, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, predicted the orientation at a news conference with reporters on Monday. Fauci said that while the guidelines were still being finalized, “doubly vaccinated” Americans could safely gather indoors.
“I use the example of a daughter who comes from another city who is doubly vaccinated, and a husband and wife doubly vaccinated, and maybe a neighbor you know is doubly vaccinated,” said Fauci. “Small meetings at people’s homes, I think you can clearly feel that the risk – the relative risk is so low that you wouldn’t have to wear a mask, that you could have a good social gathering at home.”
In recent weeks, the director of the CDC has warned Americans in appearances in the public press that the emergence of new variants and increased transmission may threaten the progress the country has made in the past month in reducing hospitalizations, cases and deaths. On Monday, Walensky again asked for caution.
“I really want to keep an eye on the fact that… the cases are increasing now, slightly. The goal is not to open trips, to open all things because … we are increasing vaccination. The goal in those first 100 days has always been to make sure that we are in a place to escape this pandemic, ”said Walensky. “With 70,000 cases a day, we are not in that place right now.”
The new CDC guidelines emerge two weeks after the agency released its recommendations for the reopening of schools. Since then, the agency has faced criticism from school unions that the guidelines have not gone far enough to ensure that teachers receive vaccines before reopening. Republicans, on the other hand, say the CDC’s recommendations impose many restrictions on schools and limit their ability to open quickly.
Vaccination guidelines can provoke a similar debate. With more than 76 million doses administered and infection rates decreasing, states across the country are considering moving ahead with reopening plans. In Massachusetts, Governor Charlie Baker announced on Monday that state restaurants will no longer have to meet capacity restrictions. Several states, including Montana and Iowa, have suspended their mask mandates.
But Walensky has been adamant that the country will continue to adhere to strict public health guidelines and will only move forward to extend the reopening when transmission rates in the community drop. The new CDC guidelines will reflect that sentiment, officials said.
Fauci also says that he does not want to go too fast for the reopening, pointing to the summer wave and the change of some states to open restaurants and bars.
“This is a great lesson. In my mind, what happened at the beginning of last summer, when we said, ‘ok, let’s try to open the country and open the economy’, and we gave access guidelines … there were two things about it that were problematic, ”Fauci said to the POLITICIAN.
“The first was that the basic level of daily infections at that time was really very high. So you were starting out in a precarious situation, “he said.” The second problematic thing is that many of the states have not adhered to the reopening guidelines. The reason I come back to this story is that, as we lower the level of cases … and we have more and more people vaccinated, you will have to gradually step back in a well-measured way. You cannot do this as a light switch. “
The Biden administration has stepped up its vaccine delivery efforts in recent weeks, promising states additional increases in doses sent in the coming months. Health officials expect the supply of vaccines to increase significantly with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine authorization last weekend. The company is expanding manufacturing capacity through a new partnership with Merck, to which President Biden will speak on Tuesday afternoon.