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Not entirely, at least not yet. In guidance for the fully vaccinated, updated July 27, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said fully vaccinated people should wear a mask “in public indoor settings in areas of substantial or high transmission.”
The CDC’s COVID Data Tracker shows whether a county has low, moderate, substantial or high transmission.
The updated guidance was due to new data on the delta variant of the coronavirus, indicating that fully vaccinated individuals who contract the variant could transmit it to others. The CDC said coronavirus infections occur in “only a small proportion” of the fully vaccinated, “even with the Delta variant,” and such infections “tend to be mild.”
The agency also said the fully vaccinated might decide to wear a mask, even in areas of low or moderate transmission, “if they are immunocompromised or at increased risk for severe disease from COVID-19, or if they have someone in their household who is immunocompromised, at increased risk of severe disease or not fully vaccinated.”
The CDC also continues to require face masks “on all planes, buses, trains, and other forms of public transportation.”
The CDC recommended universal masking in schools for everyone, whether they have been vaccinated or not.