Fully Vaccinated People Don't Need to Wear Masks Outside, Says CDC

Fully Vaccinated People Don't Need to Wear Masks Outside, Says CDC

According to updated guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued Tuesday, fully vaccinated people can venture outdoors without masks.

What You Can Start to Do -- If You’ve Been Fully Vaccinated:

The CDC said the following for fully-vaccinated people on Tuesday. 

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You can gather indoors with fully vaccinated people without wearing a mask or staying 6 feet apart.

You can gather indoors with unvaccinated people of any age from one other household (for example, visiting with relatives who all live together) without masks or staying 6 feet apart, unless any of those people or anyone they live with has an increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19.

You can gather or conduct activities outdoors without wearing a mask except in certain crowded settings and venues.

If you travel in the United States, you do not need to get tested before or after travel or self-quarantine after travel.

You need to pay close attention to the situation at your international destination before traveling outside the United States.

You do NOT need to get tested before leaving the United States unless your destination requires it.

You still need to show a negative test result or documentation of recovery from COVID-19 before boarding an international flight to the United States. You should still get tested 3-5 days after international travel. You do NOT need to self-quarantine after arriving in the United States.

If you’ve been around someone who has COVID-19, you do not need to stay away from others or get tested unless you have symptoms. However, if you live in a group setting (like a correctional or detention facility or group home) and are around someone who has COVID-19, you should still stay away from others for 14 days and get tested, even if you don’t have symptoms.

What You Should Keep Doing

For now, if you’ve been fully vaccinated, the CDC says to do the following. 

You should still protect yourself and others in many situations by wearing a mask that fits snugly. Take this precaution whenever you are:

* In indoor public settings

* Gathering indoors with unvaccinated people (including children) from more than one other household

* Visiting indoors with an unvaccinated person who is at increased risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19 or who lives with a person at increased risk

You should still avoid indoor large gatherings.

New Guidance in Perspective

"The big picture," reports Axios. "The guidelines come as more than nearly 29 million people in the U.S. have received all of their shots and more than 42 million are on their way with at least one shot received."

15 governors so far have let their state orders requiring people to wear face coverings in public expire, according to U.S. News. Many cities and local jurisdictions have also begun to increase capacity at restaurants and businesses.