WASHINGTON (AP) — In a major step toward returning to pre-pandemic life, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has eased mask-wearing guidance for fully vaccinated people. The new directive yesterday allows those vaccinated to stop wearing masks outdoors in crowds and in most indoor settings. Speaking without a mask in the Rose Garden, President Joe Biden declared the new guidelines represent “a great day for America.” Earlier in the Oval Office, he met with vaccinated Republican lawmakers — and led the group in removing their masks when the new guidance was announced. The guidance still calls for wearing masks in crowded indoor settings like buses, planes, hospitals, prisons and homeless shelters, but it will help clear the way for reopening workplaces, schools and other venues — even removing the need for social distancing for those who are fully vaccinated.
Photo: Vice President Kamala Harris and President Joe Biden greet their staff after speaking on updated guidance on mask mandates, in the Rose Garden of the White House, Thursday, May 13, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
