As the pandemic outlook improves, officials want to give Americans a break from mitigation measures, such as masking, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said.
“I know everyone is anxious to move beyond this pandemic and some of the ways we have had to change how we live over the last two years,” Walensky said. “We all share the same goal: to get to the point where Covid-19 is no longer disrupting our daily lives.”Walensky said Wednesday that the agency is considering new benchmarks for masking, basing it on criteria other than transmission — for instance, the level of severe disease in a community or hospital capacity.
The new changes, which she said will be updated"soon," will emphasize the importance of other pandemic metrics besides Covid-19 cases. "Our hospitals need to be able to take care of people with heart attacks and strokes," she said."Our emergency departments can't be so overwhelmed that patients with emergent issues have to wait in line."
Still, people should continue to wear a mask, regardless of the level of community transmission, if they are feeling unwell, have recently tested positive for Covid or have been exposed to the virus, she said.
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