People who have been fully vaccinated — for those who received two Covid-19 vaccine doses produced by Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna, or those who received one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine — don’t need to wear masks indoors or out or physically distance, with a few exceptions, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, Centers for Disease Control & Prevention director, said.
The exceptions: doctor’s offices, transit and nursing homes.
That’s good news for restaurant and bars, although it does pose the challenge of how the venues will determine who has been vaccinated and who hasn’t. While recent study of healthcare workers in Israel found the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine to be 97% effective against symptomatic infection and 86% effective against asymptomatic infection, unvaccinated people remain at risk and should continue to wear masks until they are vaccinated.
Cases in the U.S. have continued to drop, officials noted. More than 35% of the population is fully vaccinated and more than 46% have received at least one dose.
Some local jurisdictions may not lift mask orders, and businesses retain the right to require all customers to wear masks.
Nonetheless, the move is good news for hard-hit restaurants and bars as is declarations by some states, including Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) that lifted restrictions in the state.