Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra said Tuesday morning that he wears a mask despite being vaccinated.
“Masks help, vaccinations, important, and so even though I’m vaccinated I still wear a mask,” Becerra said on “CBS This Morning.” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated its guidelines on Tuesday where it recommended that it’s not necessary for fully vaccinated people to wear masks outside, unless they’re “in certain crowded settings and venues.”
Those who have gotten the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine or both vaccine doses from Pfizer and Moderna are categorized as “fully vaccinated” after two weeks of receiving their last jab, the CDC’s guidance said. (RELATED: Every American Over 16 Is Now Eligible For Vaccination, Biden Admin Says)
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Becerra said the vaccine is effective in securing people’s health and safety and ensuring others won’t get infected.
“Still, you never know and what you’re trying to do is encourage others,” Becerra said. “We’re going to get to a point where we’re going to hang up masks on our wall as you know signs of what used to be.”
“But until then, let’s try to get to the point where we’re back to normal,” Becerra said. More than 140 million Americans have received at least one dose of the vaccine and another 96 million have been fully vaccinated, including 67% of people aged 65 or older, according to CDC data.
“That’s all good news. We wanna build on that, we want others to join them because when they join them being vaccinated they can join them outside and not have to wear masks,” Becerra said.
“That’s what we’re just trying to do is make sure everyone is safe,” Becerra said. “We want to get back to a normal lifestyle, we wanna get our economy working, people back at work, restaurants open. You gotta do that the right way,” Becerra said.
The HHS director said one can go back “to a more normal lifestyle” once they are completely vaccinated.
“If you’re not vaccinated you’re still a danger as well, you’re still in danger as well, ” Becerra said. “So get vaccinated.”
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