According to the CDC, in a public press briefing, as of Thursday, May 13th, people who have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 can now go maskless indoors and in most settings.
This is welcome news for people who believe in the vaccine, who are looking forward to a mostly ‘normal’ summer in 2021.
If this sounds like you, then this press briefing will likely be of special interest to you.
In the press briefing, the CDC Director, Rochelle Walensky said this.
“Anyone who is fully vaccinated can participate in indoor and outdoor activities, large or small, without wearing a mask or physical distancing… If you are fully vaccinated, you can start doing the things that you had stopped doing because of the pandemic.”
According to the guidance, people can now “resume activities without wearing a mask or staying 6 feet apart, except where required by federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, rules, and regulations, including local business and workplace guidance.”
What Does This Mean For You?
If you’ve been fully vaccinated, it means that, for you, unless local laws, rules, or regulations deem otherwise, you are basically cleared to go back to normal.
This means that you can socialize while leaving your mask at home, and even cease the practice of social distancing.
What If You Haven’t Been Vaccinated?
If you haven’t been vaccinated yet, that’s definitely the next course of action you should pursue.
And if you’re worried about side effects, or putting it off because of safety reasons, here’s what you need to know.
Is The Covid Vaccine Truly Safe?
There has been a lot of misinformation thrown around about whether or not the vaccine is truly safe.
But here’s the real truth.
According to the CDC, Covid-19 vaccines are safe and effective.
Here is a quote from the official CDC Coronavirus webpage.
“Millions of people in the United States have received COVID-19 vaccines under the most intense safety monitoring in U.S. history. CDC recommends you get a COVID-19 vaccine as soon as possible. Many people have reported only mild side effects after COVID-19 vaccination.”
To date, over 259 million doses of the vaccine have been given within the United States.
Serious side effects are rare, and can include anaphylaxis, and thrombosis (with thrombocytopenia syndrome, but only associated with the J&J/Janssen Covid vaccines.)
In other words, there’s really nothing to worry about. A ‘rare’ side effect event only occurs at a rate of 7 per 1 million vaccinated individuals.
In Conclusion
If you’re eager to return to life as normal, then getting the vaccine sounds like the quickest way to do it.
Obviously, as the vaccine continues to roll out, we should start to see life return to normal, in basically all respects.
As it looks right now, the only thing that really stands between us, and a summer that’s mostly characterized by normalcy, is to hurry up and get as many people vaccinated as possible.
So get online, check out your nearest vaccination station, and get it taken care of.
