CDC: Fully vaccinated people don't need to wear masks outside
27 April 2021
Fully vaccinated people can venture outdoors without masks, according to updated guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued Tuesday.
The big picture: The anticipated 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.
Details: The guidance applies to fully vaccinated individuals, which health officials classify as two weeks after the second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines and two weeks after the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Vaccinated people can unmask while:
- Doing physical activities outdoors alone or with members of your household like walking, running, hiking or biking.
- Attending a small outdoor gathering either with fully vaccinated people or a mixture of vaccinated and unvaccinated people.
- Dining at an outdoor restaurant with friends from multiple households.
- Current guidelines on vaccinated people indoors and traveling still applies.
Yes, but: It can be hard to assess every individual's risk for severe COVID-19 in mass public spaces or intimate public settings, the agency says and asks vaccinated people to wear masks in situations like:
- Crowded outdoor events like live performances, parades or sporting events.
- Indoor spaces like a barber or hair salon or a movie theater.
- Attending a full capacity service at a house of worship and singing in an indoor chorus.
- Visiting an uncrowded indoor shopping mall or museum.
What they're saying: "CDC cannot provide the specific risk level for every activity in every community, so it is important to consider your own personal situation and the risk to you, your family and your community before venturing out without a mask," CDC director Rochelle Walensky said in prepared remarks.
What's next: President Biden will also mention the guidelines in remarks later on Tuesday, according to CNN.
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.