Fully vaccinated means it has been two weeks since you received your second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, or two weeks since you received the single dose of Johnson & Johnson injection.
Life may soon begin to seem normal, but just because you’ve been vaccinated doesn’t mean you can run amok living it in a pre-pandemic style.
Here’s a quick guide on what you can and still can’t do after getting vaccinated, according to the CDC:
Socialize
Can I see my friends and family once I have been fully vaccinated?
Yes! Don’t throw a big party with everyone you know, but the CDC admits that socializing gets a lot safer when vaccines are involved. The guidelines differ depending on whether the people you want to see have also been vaccinated.
- With vaccinated people you can collect inside without masks
- With unvaccinated people, you can get together indoors without a mask with members of only one household – as long as none of your unvaccinated friends / family is at high risk. That means, just in case, you still want to avoid seeing unvaccinated elderly people or people with underlying conditions that would make a possible COVID-19 infection particularly serious.
What about large gatherings?
The CDC still does not recommend medium and large gatherings, even if you are fully vaccinated.
How about hugs?
This is where your personal comfort comes into play with risk, but the risk of COVID-19 transmission with two fully vaccinated people is close to zero, so hugs should be pretty safe there. When one person has been vaccinated and the other has a low risk, hugging is also a low risk in members of one household.
Masking
Do I have to wear a mask if I am still vaccinated?
Being vaccinated does not relieve you of local and national regulations about wearing masks or face coverings in public. While the CDC says you can socialize indoors with members of one household and get exposed, the agency still suggests wearing a mask when you’re around a lot of people, in public, or when running errands.
You should continue to wear a mask or face cover and practice at a distance of 6 feet if:
- Socialize indoors with people from more than one household
- Visit to people at high risk for COVID-19 and unvaccinated
- In public
To travel
Can I travel now that I have been fully vaccinated?
The CDC still suggests avoiding domestic and international travel that is unnecessary. Many countries still prohibit US citizens from entering.
If you do need to travel, you still need to follow any applicable restrictions, such as wearing a mask on an airline or taking a PCR test before you arrive (depending on the destination).
Quarantine
Do I have to quarantine myself if I am exposed to COVID-19?
If you come into contact with someone who has COVID-19 and you have been fully vaccinated, you no longer need to do self-quarantine if you have no symptoms.
If you start having symptoms, quarantine yourself and get tested, the CDC says.
Check out the CDC’s full guidelines here.
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