The US's campaign to vaccinate its entire adult population is in full flight now that the
The former two require two doses for full immunization to be achieved, while with the latter jab only one dose is needed.
At least 59 million people in the US have received at least a single vaccine dose, while 31 million - roughly 9.2 percent of the population - are completely inoculated against the coronavirus.
The new guidelines unveiled Monday by
Fully vaccinated individuals can meet "in small gatherings indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing," she said. "So what does this mean? If you and a friend, or you and a family member, are both vaccinated, you can have dinner together (without) wearing masks, without distancing. You can visit your grandparents if you have been vaccinated and they have been too."
In spelling out its latest guidelines, the
"
The
In that regard, she said that "if grandparents have been vaccinated, they can visit their daughter and her family even if they have not been vaccinated, so long as the daughter and her family are not at risk for severe disease."
By contrast, vaccinated individuals should wear a mask, maintain physical distancing and try to gather outside or in well-ventilated areas when meeting with unvaccinated people who are at increased risk of suffering serious complications from Covid-19.
"We take this approach because all of our guidance is rooted in making sure we are keeping people safe," Walensky said.
Referring to vaccinated people who have been exposed to someone infected with Covid-19, the
Walensky also added that the
"Therefore, everyone whether vaccinated or not should continue to avoid medium- and large-size gatherings, as well as non-essential travel, and when in public spaces should continue to wear a well-fitted mask, physically distance and follow other public health measures to protect themselves and others," the
She added that there is solid clinical data showing that "the current Covid-19 vaccines are highly effective at protecting vaccinated people against severe illness, hospitalization or death from Covid-19."
Even so, a small risk still exists that "vaccinated people could become infected with milder or asymptomatic disease, and potentially even transmit the virus to others who are not vaccinated," Walensky said. EFE
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