COVID-19 Updates

CDC: You Don't Need to Mask Outdoors if You Are Vaccinated

As reported by The Washington Post, “Federal health officials said Tuesday [04/27/2021] that fully vaccinated people can go without masks outdoors when walking, jogging or biking, or dining with friends at outdoor restaurants. Officials said the changed guidance was aimed at helping those who are fully inoculated return safely to old routines, while encouraging others to get their shots to counter highly contagious new variants.”

In general, people are considered to be fully vaccinated 2 weeks after their second dose of a 2-dose vaccine series (e.g., Pfizer or Moderna), or 2 weeks after a single-dose vaccine such as Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen vaccine. If someone does not meet these requirements, they are not fully vaccinated and should continue to take full precautions. Additinoally, those who have a medical condition or are taking medications that weaken your immune system, may not be fully protected even after vaccination. The new recommendations are for personal consideration and are not intended for healthcare settings.

Even after full vaccination, CDC general guidelines should still be followed by everyone, to avoid the spread (e.g., wear a mask, social distance 6’ apart, avoid crowds and poorly ventilated spaces) until more is known. See full set of new guidelines for those who have been fully vaccinated at: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/fully-vaccinated.html

Fauci Says U.S. Should See Turning Point in the Pandemic ‘within a few weeks’  

If the U.S. continues its vaccination pace, “literally within a few weeks, we’re going to start to see a turning around of the dynamics,” Fauci said on Monday. “Not down to no infections,” he said. “If you’re waiting for classic measles-like herd immunity, that’s going to be a while before we get there. But that doesn’t mean we’re not going to have a significant diminution in the number of infections per day and a significant diminution in all of the parameters, namely hospitalizations and deaths.” Visit the CNBC website for more details from the interview.

NBC News reports that, “After a worrisome uptick in Covid-19 cases in the United States in recent weeks, there are encouraging signs that the situation is beginning to stabilize, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. New reported infections fell by 21 percent over the past week, with the most recent seven-day average coming in at just over 54,400 cases per day.”

New At-home Pill to Treat Covid Could be Available by Year End

CNBC reports, “Pfizer’s experimental oral drug to treat Covid-19 at the first sign of illness could be available by the end of the year. Health experts say the drug, taken by mouth, could be a game changer because people newly infected with the virus could use it outside of hospitals. Researchers hope the medication will keep the disease from progressing and prevent hospital trips.”