Thread by @DrEricDing

Not pleased at all—In a sharp turnabout from previous advice, CDC on Thursday said fully vaccinated may stop wearing masks or maintaining social distance in most indoor and outdoor settings, regardless of size, regardless of others.

Too early. #COVID19
nytimes.com/2021/05/13/hea…

2) This is too risky in my opinion. asymptomatic transmission efficacy is only in the 70s-80s even for the best vaccines. Much lower for others and for some variants.

https://twitter.com/therecount/status/1392908020775010312

3) “Walensky's announcement have a few caveats. She warned that people who are immune compromised should speak with their doctors before giving up their masks.”

4) @CDCDirector also said that "the past year has shown us that this virus can be unpredictable, so if things get worse, there is always a chance we may need to make change to the recommendations."

5) There have been reports of thousands of cases of "breakthrough" infections among vaccinated people in the United States -- a tiny number among more than 117 million who are now fully vaccinated.

Yeah but transmissions is still very real.

6) Walensky noted that "the resulting infection is more likely to have a lower viral load, may be shorter in duration, and likely less risk of transmission to others."

Yeah but it’s about transmission of the virus to those who aren’t vaccinated. And transmission of VARIANTS!!

7) Other Caveats:
· This guidance does not apply to healthcare settings (e.g., hospitals, long-term care, doctors’ offices).
· This guidance also does not apply to correctional facilities or homeless shelters. CDC is updating our guidance for other settings.

8) · Fully vaccinated people should still wear well-fitted masks where required by federal, state, local, tribal or territorial laws, rules and regulations, including local business and workplace guidance

9) · If you travel, you will still be required to wear a mask on planes, buses, trains, and other forms of public transportation traveling into, within, or out of the United States, and in U.S. transportation hubs such as airports and stations.

10) · Fully vaccinated international travelers arriving in the United States are still required to get tested within 3 days of their flight (or show documentation of recovery from COVID-19 in the past 3 months) and should still get tested 3-5 days after their trip.

11) I want people to remember this Georgia nursing home outbreak— most people vaccinated… yet one carrier of the virus brought it to the heavily vaccinated nursing home… 1 death. See thread 🧵

https://twitter.com/DrEricDing/status/1384958240354709509

12) Also, variants is an issue— while AstraZeneca vaccine isn’t used in the Us, in the UK, where #B117 prevalent, the AZ vaccine has much lower efficacy for asymptomatic B117 than symptomatic B117. Just FYI.

https://twitter.com/DrEricDing/status/1377319936968826880

13) also THINK OF THE KIDS… tens of millions of kids aren’t vaccinated or even eligible yet… cough… #LongCovid @LongCovidKids… cough.

14) Even if you’re healthy… be the person who stops the transmission chain. Be a silent hero to others, not the silent transmitter.

15) I’ve talked to many doctors and public health scientists about this (emphasize on public health experts, not lab 🧪 experts), and many are saying its “bananas” 🍌

https://twitter.com/DrEricDing/status/1392922225746096138

16) Once the floodgates open… you can’t close them again… especially if variants surge again.

https://twitter.com/DrEricDing/status/1392926446922964999

17) How would grocery stores even verify someone is vaccinated? We already know focus groups of unvaccinated say they would lie / forge vaccine cards.

Are grocery stores gonna enforce vaccine cards upon entry? Doubtful.

We still need masks indoors.

18) let this sink in— if Singapore can’t hold back community outbreak, then is it really safe to lift mask rules and allow indoor dining? Singapore is a bell weather for the world.

https://twitter.com/drericding/status/1393077807643824128

19) What if we only did vaccines but no masks? Would it work???

…hell no. Read why below…. ⬇️

https://twitter.com/drericding/status/1393090966928637952

20) again, kids are unable to be vaccinated yet. Let’s protect kids. Mask up.

https://twitter.com/fibke/status/1393205007378440197

21) this is why we still need to mask below the threshold of sufficient vaccinations…. Asymptomatic transmission can still pass it to the vulnerable

https://twitter.com/drericding/status/1393014356850495490