{"id":66140,"date":"2021-05-21T18:35:36","date_gmt":"2021-05-21T22:35:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/?p=66140"},"modified":"2021-05-21T18:35:36","modified_gmt":"2021-05-21T22:35:36","slug":"the-cdcs-new-mask-guidelines-could-actually-increase-risk-of-spreading-covid-at-work-and-in-public-scientists-say","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/?p=66140","title":{"rendered":"The CDC\u2019s new mask guidelines could actually increase risk of spreading Covid at work and in public, scientists say"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><!--more-->Rich Mendez<br \/>\nCNBC<\/p>\n<div id=\"RegularArticle-KeyPoints-4\" class=\"RenderKeyPoints-keyPoints\" data-test=\"keyPoints-1\" data-analytics=\"RegularArticle-keyPoints-4-1\">\n<div class=\"RenderKeyPoints-wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"RenderKeyPoints-header\">KEY POINTS<\/h3>\n<div class=\"RenderKeyPoints-list\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<ul>\n<li>The CDC abruptly reversed its mask guidance for vaccinated Americans last week to say that vaccinated people no longer need to wear a mask indoors or outdoors in most settings.<\/li>\n<li>States across the U.S. took the news as a cue to ease mask mandates.<\/li>\n<li>Texas Gov. Greg Abbott used the new guidance to justify signing an executive order that threatens to fine local officials and municipalities that don\u2019t drop mask requirements.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"RegularArticle-ArticleBody-5\" class=\"ArticleBody-articleBody\" data-module=\"ArticleBody\" data-test=\"articleBody-2\" data-analytics=\"RegularArticle-articleBody-5-2\">\n<div id=\"ArticleBody-InlineImage-106885626\" class=\"InlineImage-imageEmbed hasBkg\" data-test=\"InlineImage\">\n<div class=\"InlineImage-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"InlineImage-imagePlaceholder\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"InlineImage-imageContainer\" tabindex=\"-1\" role=\"button\"><picture data-test=\"Picture\"><source srcset=\"https:\/\/image.cnbcfm.com\/api\/v1\/image\/106885626-1621461419726-gettyimages-1318925937-4743cc16-e25d-4c09-b920-4bb6839038a5.jpeg?v=1621461500&amp;w=740&amp;h=416\" media=\"(min-width: 1340px)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/image.cnbcfm.com\/api\/v1\/image\/106885626-1621461419726-gettyimages-1318925937-4743cc16-e25d-4c09-b920-4bb6839038a5.jpeg?v=1621461500&amp;w=630&amp;h=354\" media=\"(min-width: 1020px)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/image.cnbcfm.com\/api\/v1\/image\/106885626-1621461419726-gettyimages-1318925937-4743cc16-e25d-4c09-b920-4bb6839038a5.jpeg?v=1621461500&amp;w=900&amp;h=506\" media=\"(min-width: 760px)\" \/><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/image.cnbcfm.com\/api\/v1\/image\/106885626-1621461419726-gettyimages-1318925937-4743cc16-e25d-4c09-b920-4bb6839038a5.jpeg?v=1621461500&amp;w=678&amp;h=381\" alt=\"People without masks walk in Times Square on May 19, 2021 in New York City.\" \/><\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"InlineImage-imageEmbedCaption\">People without masks walk in Times Square on May 19, 2021 in New York City.<\/div>\n<div class=\"InlineImage-imageEmbedCredit\">John Smith | VIEW press | Corbis News | Getty Images<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>The CDC\u2019s new mask guidelines could actually increase the risk of spreading Covid-19 in public spaces and workplaces, scientists of a leading infectious disease group said Thursday.<\/p>\n<p>The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2021\/05\/13\/cdc-says-fully-vaccinated-people-dont-need-to-wear-face-masks-indoors-or-outdoors-in-most-settings.html\">abruptly reversed<\/a> its mask guidance for vaccinated Americans last week to say that vaccinated people no longer need to wear a mask indoors or outdoors in most settings. Officials said they changed their guidance, in part, because research shows the vaccines provide a very high level of protection against getting sick from Covid-19 and spreading it to others.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere is no debate about this fact,\u201d Dr. Jeffrey Duchin, who sits on the CDC\u2019s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, said at a press briefing hosted by the Infectious Diseases Society of America on Thursday. The agency\u2019s announcement, however, led to widespread confusion and frustration because \u201cit was unexpected and lacked needed context for implementation by state and local public health community,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>Duchin is the society\u2019s liaison to the CDC\u2019s immunization committee. The society represents leading infectious disease specialists in the U.S.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere was no information on how to apply the guidance in practice, particularly related to the inability to verify vaccination status,\u201d Duchin said. The CDC also didn\u2019t provide any guidance on whether people should continue wearing masks in areas of high transmission or low vaccination rates, he said. \u201cWhat the CDC did though was sub-optimal and allowed for misimpression that the mask mandates have been lifted.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Physicians across the country and federal health officials continue to emphasize that only vaccinated people are safe to remove their masks. The new mask guidance has been misinterpreted as an end to the pandemic and mask mandates, putting local health officials in a very tough position. States across the U.S. took the news as a cue to ease mask mandates. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott used the new guidance to justify signing an executive order that threatens to fine local officials and municipalities that don\u2019t drop mask requirements.<\/p>\n<p>Duchin said both vaccinated and unvaccinated people are probably safe outdoors without masks, but that\u2019s not the case inside.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNow the risk of Covid-19 spread is increased in crowded indoor spaces with unvaccinated people and especially with poor ventilation,\u201d Duchin said. While the CDC\u2019s scientific basis for the change \u201cis solid,\u201d Duchin said ending the indoor mask mandate \u201ccould lead to increased risk in public spaces and workplaces with preventable Covid-19 spread primarily among the unvaccinated.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Vaccination rates vary across the country, and the majority of those vaccinated are older adults. Large subgroups, such as younger adults, remain unvaccinated.<\/p>\n<p>Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo, who also spoke at the briefing, said research has shown that up to 3% of Americans were told by their physicians that they have some level of immunodeficiency, which places them at an increased risk of exposure to Covid.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMillions of people fit this bill, and we have literally very little data on whether the vaccine works in them,\u201d Marrazzo said. \u201cIt\u2019s a real reason to be cautious and interpret the guidelines carefully.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The scientists also said that people need to acknowledge that there is uncertainty about the future course of the pandemic, the impact of emerging variants, how long immunity lasts and the potential for resurgence of Covid-19.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Covid-19 outbreak is not by any means over, there\u2019s still significant uncertainty and there\u2019s still significant disease activity,\u201d Duchin said.<\/p>\n<p>If someone is fully vaccinated and has no other conditions that compromise their community, and if the rates of Covid are relatively low where they live and the vaccination coverage is high, Marrazzo said, it \u201cwould be 100% fine pretty much going anywhere without a mask.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marrazzo added that because vaccination rates are not even at 50% in her community, she will continue to wear a mask indoors, despite being fully vaccinated.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf I knew that we were seeing really remarkable declines in hospitalization and symptomatic illness that was related possibly to Covid, and had a very high immunization rate, then I would probably be fine going without a mask, but I don\u2019t see that happening anytime real soon,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>While almost half of all people in the U.S., 160.2 million, have received at least one shot, Marrazzo said only 4.6% of the world\u2019s population has done the same.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeople need to pay attention about what\u2019s going on and pay attention to vaccination rates, pay attention to the involvement of these new variants and think about being prepared to sort of ramp things back up again,\u201d Marrazzo warned.<\/p>\n<p><em>Correction: This story has been updated to reflect that the press briefing was hosted by the Infectious Diseases Society of America.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>___<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2021\/05\/20\/cdc-mask-guidelines-could-actually-increase-risk-of-spreading-covid-at-work-and-in-public-scientists-say.html\">https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2021\/05\/20\/cdc-mask-guidelines-could-actually-increase-risk-of-spreading-covid-at-work-and-in-public-scientists-say.html<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-66140","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66140","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=66140"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66140\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=66140"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=66140"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=66140"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}