CDC says those fully-vaccinated can largely ditch masks indoors

WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is easing indoor mask-wearing guidance for fully vaccinated people, allowing them to safely stop wearing masks inside in most places.

The announcement came Thursday from CDC Director Dr.  Rochelle Walensky.

The new guidance still calls for wearing masks in crowded indoor settings like buses, planes, hospitals, prisons and homeless shelters, but could ease restrictions for reopening workplaces and schools.

The CDC also no longer recommends that fully vaccinated people wear masks outdoors in crowds.

“We have all longed for this moment — when we can get back to some sense of normalcy,” said Walensky.

The more people get vaccinated, the faster infections will drop — and the harder it will be for the coronavirus to mutate enough to escape vaccines, according to health experts.

Thursday’s move comes as nearly half of the U.S. population has received at least one dose of vaccine and coronavirus cases are at their lowest rate since September. Also, deaths are at their lowest point since last April.