The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are finalizing guidelines to clarify what Americans have received Covid-19 Vaccines According to two sources at the bureau who are familiar with drafting it, do and should not do.
The upcoming guideline, first reported by Politico, is expected to require fully vaccinated individuals to be able to gather in small groups with other people who have also been vaccinated. The CDC currently does not recommend in-person meetings with the general public, saying that “meeting virtually or with the people you live with is the safest choice.”
Even for people who are fully vaccinated, other mitigating measures will still be recommended, including wearing a mask in public and social aloofness.
The sources did not want to specify exactly when this guideline would be released, but it was said that it would be released when it is finalized “later this week.”
During Monday’s COVID-19 response briefing from the White House, President Biden’s chief medical adviser, Dr. Anthony Fauci, a sneak peek at the guidelines by saying that small gatherings among people who are “double vaccinated” have a low risk – “so low that you shouldn’t have to wear a mask so you can have a good social gathering at home. to hold. ”
Both Pfizer and Moderna vaccines require two doses; Johnson & JohnsonOnly one shot is needed. That vaccine received an Emergency Use Authorization from the Food and Drug Administration over the weekend, and doses are being delivered this week.
Guidance comes as the nation is at a crossroads in its fight against the virus. According to data from Johns Hopkins University, mean daily cases across the country have fallen by more than 50% in the past month, but that progress has been flattened. Over the past week, data from the CDC indicates that the average number of new cases is up nearly 2%.
CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said at Monday’s briefing that she “remained deeply concerned about a possible shift in the pandemic trajectory.” States across the country, including New York, Massachusetts, and Arkansas, are easing COVID-related restrictions on businesses, raising fears that the US could be wary too soon. On Tuesday, Texas became the third state to revoke its statewide mask mandate in recent days by joining Montana and Iowa.
At the same time, the pace of vaccinations continues to pick up, and with more Americans vaccinated, the need for new guidelines on what this population can do safely has increased. But Walensky stressed that now is not the time to move on or ignore other security measures.
“The goal in those first 100 days has always been to make sure we are in a place to get out of this pandemic,” she said. “With 70,000 cases per day, we are currently not in that place.”