Fully vaccinated can drop the masks, skip social distancing
By ZEKE MILLER and MICHAEL BALSAMO Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is easing mask-wearing guidance for fully vaccinated people, allowing them to stop wearing masks outdoors in crowds and in most indoor settings. The new guidance announced Thursday is a major step toward returning to pre-pandemic life. President Joe Biden calls it “a great day for America.” The new guidance still calls for wearing masks in crowded indoor settings like buses, planes, hospitals, prisons and homeless shelters but helps clear the way for reopening workplaces and schools. CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky says: “We have all longed for this moment.” The Pentagon said Friday fully vaccinated personnel no longer need to wear masks at Defense Department facilities.