President Biden defended wearing a mask inside even when everyone around is vaccinated Friday, adding that it is “still good policy.”
“You walked out to the podium with your mask on.Why do you choose to wear a mask so often when you’re vaccinated and you’re around other people who are vaccinated?” a reporter asked the president during a briefing on April jobs numbers.
“Because I’m worried about you,” Biden quipped. “No, it’s a joke.”
“When we’re inside, it’s still good policy to wear the mask,” Biden added.
BIDEN SAYS NO MASKS OUTDOORS FOR FULLY VACCINATED PEOPLE
“The problem is, lots of times I walk away from this podium, you notice, I forget to put my mask back on because I’m used to not wearing it outside,” he added.
In late April the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated its guidance to say that fully vaccinated people can take off their masks when outdoors, except when they are in crowded settings.
Even when gathering with friends in the park or going for a picnic, vaccinated people need not wear a mask, the agency said the risk is “very low” of passing the virus in open air.
BIDEN THANKS CONSERVATIVES LIKE MCCONNELL FOR PUSHING VACCINES
The update also clarified that fully vaccinated workers no longer need to be restricted from work following exposure as long as they are asymptomatic.
The White House coronavirus team reported Friday that 110 million Americans are fully vaccinated and 150 million have received at least one dose. Seventy percent of Americans over 65 are fully inoculated.
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The seven day average of coronavirus cases is down 13% over last week, and down 81.6% over the peak on Jan. 8. In the past day, 656 Americans have died from Covid-19.