The recommendation revised a May guidance from the CDC that people fully vaccinated against COVID-19 do not need to wear masks indoors.
Rochelle P. Walensky, director of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, confirmed during a news conference Tuesday that the organization had updated its guidelines for the fully vaccinated. The recommendation applies to areas of the U.S. with high transmission rates.
Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Alaska, South Carolina and Florida may be some of the areas referenced by the CDC in the recommendation, as they have seen a severe uptick in cases in the past week.
Walensky also said that all people in K-12 schools are now recommended to wear masks, regardless of vaccination status.
The decision to change the guidelines came after the CDC became aware of some rare cases in which people infected with the delta variant after vaccination could be contagious and pass it to others. However, the “vast majority of transmission” is occurring through unvaccinated people, Walensky said.
President Joe Biden issued a statement following the announcement encouraging Americans to heed to recommendations.
“Today’s announcement by the CDC—that new research and concerns about the Delta variant leads CDC to recommend a return to masking in parts of the country—is another step on our journey to defeating this virus. I hope all Americans who live in the areas covered by the CDC guidance will follow it; I certainly will when I travel to these areas,” Biden wrote.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the chief COVID-19 medical adviser for President Joe Biden, said on Sunday that the CDC had been reconsidering mask guidances for vaccinated citizens after a recent and severe uptick in infections in the U.S
“We’re going in the wrong direction,” he told CNN on Sunday.
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These states may be some of the areas referenced by the CDC in newly-updated guidelines that recommend places with high transmission rates require masks in public, indoor settings.
The six states are Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Alaska, South Carolina and Florida, which also have some of the lower vaccination rates in the country.
In a statement released after the announcement of the new CDC recommendations, President Joe Biden said he hopes “all Americans who live in the areas covered by the CDC guidance will follow it.”
“I certainly will when I travel to these areas,” he added.
Walensky said that the CDC has been collecting data on the infections through “more than 20 cohorts of people.”
“These include tens of thousands of people who we are following nationwide, and they include healthcare workers, essential workers, long-term care facilities, and in some of these cohorts we’re collecting PCR (test) data from every person in them weekly,” Walensky added.
The push for breakthrough infection data coincides with a CDC announcement that it had observed some rare cases in which vaccinated people infected with the delta variant could be contagious and pass the virus to others. Walensky promised that the organization will report on its findings from the breakthrough infection data “soon.”
“Today’s announcement by the CDC—that new research and concerns about the Delta variant leads CDC to recommend a return to masking in parts of the country—is another step on our journey to defeating this virus. I hope all Americans who live in the areas covered by the CDC guidance will follow it; I certainly will when I travel to these areas,” Biden wrote.
Like CDC Director Rochelle P. Walensky, Biden encouraged people to continue getting vaccinated, an area where “we still need to do better.” He pledged to begin planning the next steps in America’s vaccination campaign on Thursday.
“Vaccinations are free, safe, and effective to every American. They’ve been available to every adult in this country for more than three months—at locations within 5 miles of 90% of the US population,” Biden wrote in the statement.
Los Angeles County in California is one of these areas, which reinstated a mask requirement after it saw a sevenfold increase in new cases since reopening on June 15.
“We expect to keep masking requirements in place until we begin to see improvements in our community transmission of COVID-19. But waiting for us to be at high community transmission level before making a change would be too late,” Los Angeles County Health Officer Muntu Davis said in a statement.
States like Alabama, Alaska, Florida and Mississippi have some of the highest infection rates coupled with the lowest vaccination rates. Only the states themselves and local officials can decide whether to heed the CDC’s guidance.
On behalf of the CDC, she recommended community leaders “encourage vaccination and universal masking” to “prevent further outbreaks in areas with substantial transmission.”
“The highest spread of cases and severe outcomes is happening in places with low vaccination rates and among unvaccinated people,” Walensky said.
“This moment, and most importantly, the associated illness, suffering and death, could have been avoided with higher vaccination coverage in the country,” she added.
While the “vast majority of transmission” is occurring through unvaccinated people, the rare instances of contagious vaccinated people spurred the CDC’s decision to change the guidance, Walensky said.
Walensky also said that all people in K-12 schools are now recommended to wear masks, even when fully vaccinated.
The announcement is anticipated to come during the CDC’s 3 p.m. (EDT) news conference, when it is also expected to recommend vaccinated people begin wearing face masks when indoors in certain parts of the U.S.
