Fauci: Open to easing up on masks
New cases still too high, he says
Dr. Anthony Fauci on Sunday said he was open to relaxing indoor masking rules as more Americans get vaccinated against covid-19, just two days after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention belatedly emphasized the danger of airborne transmis- sion.
President Joe Biden’s chief medi- cal adviser for the pan- demic, Fau- ci said that as vaccinations climb, “we do need to start being more liberal” in terms of rules for wearing masks indoors, although he noted that the nation was still averaging about 43,000 new virus
Fauci added that it is “conceivable” that during seasonal periods where respiratory-borne viruses such as the flu are prevalent, people might decide in the next year or two to wear masks to diminish the possibility of either spreading or catching these diseases.
cases per day. “We’ve got to get it much, much lower than that,” he said.
Fauci also said that people may ultimately decide to wear masks seasonally after the coronavirus pandemic to help avoid spreading or contracting respiratory illnesses such as the flu.
On Friday, the CDC updated its guidance about how the coronavirus spreads, stating explicitly that people can inhale airborne virus even when they are more than 6 feet away from an infected individual. Previously, the agency had said that most infections were acquired through “close contact, not airborne transmission.”
The update brought the agency in line with evidence of the danger from airborne droplets that public health researchers had noted as the pandemic unfolded last year, and, according to some experts, also underscored the urgency for the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration to issue standards for employers to address potential airborne hazards in the workplace.
Fauci’s comments Sunday came in response to a question about comments that Dr. Scott Gottlieb, former head of the Food and Drug Administration, made last week on CNBC. He said that relaxing indoor mask mandates now — “especially in environments where you know you have a high level of vaccination” — would give public health officials “the credibility to implement them” again in the fall or winter if cases surge again.
Fauci, asked by George Stephanopoulos on ABC’s “This Week” whether he agreed, said: “I think so, and I think you’re going to probably be seeing that as we go along, and as more people get vaccinated.”
“The CDC will be, almost in real time, George, updating their recommendations and their guidelines,” Fauci added. “But, yes, we do need to start being more liberal as we get more people vaccinated.”
More than a third of the U.S. population — more than 112 million people — is fully vaccinated, and another 40 million people have received the first dose of a two-dose protocol.
The CDC, which issues national guidance on masking, says that even vaccinated people should continue to wear masks in indoor public spaces, including restaurants when they are not eating or drinking. In many places across the country, it is clear that the guidance is not being followed.
In an interview Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Jeffrey Zients, Biden’s covid-response coordinator, was somewhat more circumspect than Fauci when asked about Gottlieb’s comments.
“I think everyone is tired, and wearing a mask is — it can be a pain.” Zients said. “But we’re getting there. And the light at the end of the tunnel is brighter and brighter. Let’s keep up our guard. Let’s follow the CDC guidance. And the CDC guidance across time will allow vaccinated people more and more privileges to take off that mask.”
Zients also suggested that instead of reaching herd immunity — the point when enough people are immune to the virus that it can no longer spread through the population — the goal should be to achieve some sense of normalcy by getting 70% of Americans immunized. Biden has called for 70% to have at least one dose by July 4.
Reaching 70% would create “a pattern of decreasing cases, hospitalizations and deaths and take us down to a sustainable low level,” Zients said, pointing to Israel, a world leader in vaccinations, as a model.
In that country, vaccinations have reached almost 60% of the population since they began Dec. 19, and the seven-day average of new cases has dropped from a high of more than 8,600 on Jan. 17 to fewer than 60 as of Saturday.
PANDEMIC LESSONS
In an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Fauci pointed out that the public has grown accustomed to wearing masks and added that quantifiable data shows that its use has helped stem the spread of other viruses.
“We’ve had practically a nonexistent flu season this year merely because people were doing the kinds of public health things that were directed predominantly against covid-19,” he said.
Fauci added that it is “conceivable” that during seasonal periods where respiratory-borne viruses such as the flu are prevalent, people might decide in the next year or two to wear masks to diminish the possibility of either spreading or catching these diseases.
Common viruses such as influenza have virtually disappeared this year, partly because of coronavirus restrictions including masks. And a sharp decline of flu infections during this year’s season has led to only one registered pediatric death, compared with dozens in past years, CDC data shows.
Fauci’s remarks come about two weeks after federal health officials said fully vaccinated people can go without masks outdoors when walking, jogging, biking or dining at outdoor restaurants. The CDC continued to recommend masking in crowded outdoor settings and venues such as stadiums and concerts where it was difficult to maintain social distance and where many unvaccinated people could be present.
The announcement brought a sense relief to pandemic-weary Americans after more than a year of shutdown measures and mandatory use of masks. But even before the CDC’s announcement, states such as Kentucky had begun easing mask use outdoors; governments in Mississippi and Texas lifted the restriction altogether.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, mask mandates have been a source of political contention, with officials either seeking to require face coverings to help stem the spread of the virus or arguing that they violate personal freedom. Some have questioned the science behind it, alluding to misinformation.
Political standoffs sowed confusion about when and where to wear them.
A day after being sworn in, Biden signed an executive order mandating mask-wearing in airports and on federal property, planes and buses, breaking from a Trump administration that often dismissed the effectiveness of wearing a mask.
As the nation awaits the end of a pandemic that has killed almost 582,000 people in the United States, Biden is now hoping for some sense of pre-pandemic normalcy by the Fourth of July.
The United States has administered at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine to 58% of the nation’s adult population, according to CDC data. But the pace has slowed over the past few weeks and states have reported a decline in demand, prompting state and federal officials to find incentives for people to get the shots.
The decline in demand for the vaccine has coincided with major cities preparing to fully reopen before summer.
On Sunday, Fauci adjusted his timeline for a full return to normalcy in his interview on “This Week,” predicting that it could be achieved by Mother’s Day 2022. He emphasized that such a timetable would be possible only if an “overwhelming proportion” of the population gets vaccinated.
“I hope that next Mother’s Day, we’re going to see a dramatic difference than what we’re seeing right now. I believe that we will be about as close to back to normal as we can,” Fauci said.