The federal government has decided to lift the mandate on indoor mask use in most public areas. This policy will be applied to most places, including schools, convenience stores, gyms, and hair salons. The rule will return on Jan. 11, 2022. However, in states where the CDC has been in discussions with state health officials, the mandate will be lifted. In Texas, a statewide mask requirement was lifted on 4/10/21. Private businesses and gatherings over fifty people remain required to wear a face mask.
The CDC recently updated its guidelines for indoor mask use, removing the universal mask mandate for public settings, including schools and child care facilities. In New Jersey, a new guidance for schools will be released next week. The new guidance will help school districts determine when to wear a mask. In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo lifted the requirement for public transportation and hospitals. In Massachusetts, the state governor has said that the state’s school mask mandate is still in place.
The CDC recently amended its COVID-19 guidelines. Now, the CDC says that most Americans no longer need to wear a face mask in public settings. While the guidelines did not affect public settings until Aug. 25, the new guidance states that “low-risk” counties are still considered to have high transmission. This change also does not apply to hospitals, but to public transportation. A new law that took effect on the CDC’s regulations is likely to affect the health of millions of people.
The CDC’s Covid-19 community level metrics are based on three pieces of data: the number of people in a community, how much the disease is spread, and where it originates. The CDC’s website lists the current Covid-19 levels in each county in the US. The CDC recommends wearing a face mask only if you are at risk. Besides wearing a face mask, you should also consider getting vaccinated, boost your immune system, and get tested for symptoms of COVID-19.
CDC’s updated guidance on COVID-19 has changed the recommendations for people in high-risk and low-risk counties. Now, more than half of the U.S. population lives in a low-risk county. The other half of the population lives in a high-risk county and needs a mask. If you live in one of these areas, you are not at risk.
The CDC recently updated its COVID-19 guidelines. The new guidelines place more than half of the nation’s counties at low-risk, and only 5% of people in these counties need a mask. This is an improvement from the prior guidance, which stated that more than a quarter of the U.S. population is at a high-risk for COVID-19 transmission.