Washington: The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Tuesday changed its mask recommendation. Now fully vaccinated individuals have been asked to wear masks indoors in public places where COVID-19 is spreading rapidly.
Earlier this month, the CDC had tightened the regulations for all students, teachers and staff at schools to wear masks regardless of whether they were vaccinated.
COVID-19 cases have been increasing in the US because of the highly transmissible Delta variant which now accounts for 80 per cent of new cases. The US leads in the number of new cases around the world.
Manhattan, Los Angeles, San Francisco and the whole of Florida meet the transmission criteria for the indoor-mask regulation.
President Joe Biden had removed the mask mandate on May 13 this year.
Nearly 50 per cent of the population in the US have been fully vaccinated.
