LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Last week the Centers for Disease Control issued new guidance that basically said people who are fully vaccinated can go without masks in almost all circumstances. However, not all health experts agree with the CDC and say there are several good reasons to keep wearing masks at this time.
Here are the some of those reasons:
- It takes time for the vaccine to kick in. It takes 2 weeks to reach the nearly 95% effectiveness rate after you receive the 2nd dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine.
- We don’t know how long post-vaccine antibodies will be adequate to stave off sickness.
- We don’t know how effective the vaccines may be against future variants. Although the current vaccines have proven to be mostly effective against the current variants, there's no way to predict the future.
- If you have a medical condition or are taking medications that weaken the immune system, you should still wear a mask.
- The vaccines do not provide 100% protection and there’s no way to tell who the 5% will be who may still be at risk.
- Although the vaccines will prevent death and severe illness, there is proof that there are long-term effects even from mild cases of COVID-19. The long-term effects can seriously decrease quality of life.
- Those who have been vaccinated might be asymptotic spreaders. Experts are concerned that vaccinated people can still become infected without symptoms and spread it to others who have not been vaccinated yet.
- We still need to protect those with compromised immune systems and those who can’t be vaccinated, including young children.
SOURCES
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