'We don't want to all get into lockdown again' - Support in NYC for new CDC mask recommendations

Record ID: 1628962

  • Title: 'We don't want to all get into lockdown again' - Support in NYC for new CDC mask recommendations
  • Date: 27th July 2021
  • Summary: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (JULY 27, 2021) (REUTERS) GROUP, MOSTLY WEARING MASKS, WALKING IN TIMES SQUARE UNMASKED WOMEN TAKING PHOTOGRAPHS VARIOUS OF MITZI COFFIN SEATED WITH DAUGHTER (SOUNDBITE) (English) MITZI COFFIN , VISITOR FROM TEXAS, SAYING: "As a person with autoimmune disease, I think that I should probably wear a mask indoors now. So, with the new variant, with the new Delta variant out there, I think it is probably wise that I do wear a mask indoors. I'm not doing it currently, but I do think that I should wear a mask." (REPORTER ASKING OFF CAMERA) "Are you going to now?" (SOUNDBITE) (English) MITZI COFFIN , VISITOR FROM TEXAS, SAYING: "I probably will, yes." REVEREND MATTHEW BURKE SEATED (SOUNDBITE) (English) REVEREND MATTHEW BURKE, NEW YORK RESIDENT, SAYING: "It would depend on the ventilation in the venue indoors. If there's no ventilation, wear a mask." (REPORTER ASKING OFF CAMERA) "Do you wear a mask indoors?" (SOUNDBITE) (English) REVEREND MATTHEW BURKE, NEW YORK RESIDENT, SAYING: "At times. Yes, I have a mask in my pocket." PEOPLE IN TIMES SQUARE (SOUNDBITE) (English) JOSIE ACQUAH, VISITOR FROM OHIO, SAYING: "I think it's a good idea because it's better safe than sorry. You know, you never know what happens. So I think it's a good idea." (REPORTER SAYING OFF CAMERA) "You don't have a mask." (SOUNDBITE) (English) JOSIE ACQUAH, VISITOR FROM OHIO, SAYING: "I don't because I can't keep masks. But if I had a mask, I'd wear it." (SOUNDBITE) (English) JEFF KIM, SAYING: "I think it's the right thing to do. I mean, with the Delta variant it seems like people who, you know, who are vaccinated are getting breakthrough cases and stuff. So, yeah, absolutely. I think it's the right thing to put masks back on." PEOPLE WALKING IN TIMES SQUARE VARIOUS OF ABBY GONZALEZ AND HER FRIEND SITTING IN TIMES SQUARE (SOUNDBITE) (English) ABBY GONZALEZ, NEW YORK RESIDENT, SAYING: "I think it's a step forward in that situation where rates are going up again. Because we don't want to all get into lockdown again because some people don't want to get vaccinated. If you're vaccinated, then OK if you don't want to wear your mask, then don't wear your mask. But if you're not and your rates are getting higher, like I suggest either get vaccinated or continue to wear your mask, because you can't win both ways. And we all want life to go back to how it was prior to the pandemic. So, yeah." VARIOUS OF PEOPLE IN TIMES SQUARE
  • Embargoed: 10th August 2021 22:35
  • Keywords: CDC COVID-19 Delta variant Times Square coronavirus masks indoors masks mandate
  • Location: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
  • City: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
  • Country: USA
  • Topics: Health/Medicine,United States
  • Reuters ID: LVA001ENMAXXJ
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:In New York's Times Square, there's wide support for the revised CDC mask recommendations.
    U.S. authorities said on Tuesday (July 27) Americans fully vaccinated against COVID-19 should go back to wearing masks in indoor public places in regions where the coronavirus and especially the Delta variant are spreading rapidly.
    The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also recommended all students and teachers at kindergarten through 12th grade schools wear masks regardless of vaccination status. The CDC said children should return to full-time, in-person learning in the fall with proper prevention strategies.
    The changes mark a reversal of the CDC's announcement in May that prompted millions of vaccinated Americans to shed their face coverings.
    In Times Square, passersby said the new guidance was a good idea.
    "As a person with autoimmune disease, I think that I should probably wear a mask indoors now," said Mitzi Coffin, who was visiting from Texas with her family. "With the new Delta variant out there, I think it is probably wise that I do wear a mask indoors. I'm not doing it currently, but I do think that I should wear a mask."
    New York resident Abby Gonzalez added, "I think it's a step forward in that situation where rates are going up again. Because we don't want to all get into lockdown again because some people don't want to get vaccinated."
    The United States leads the world in the daily average number of new infections, accounting for one in every nine cases reported worldwide each day. The seven-day average for new cases has been rising sharply and stands at 57,126, still about a quarter of the pandemic peak.
    "In areas with substantial and high transmission, CDC recommends that fully vaccinated individuals wear a mask in public indoor settings to help prevent spread of Delta and protect others," the agency said.
    The CDC said that 63% of U.S. counties had high transmission rates that warranted mask wearing. The Delta variant is highly transmissible.
    In May, the agency advised that fully vaccinated people do not need to wear masks outdoors and can avoid wearing them indoors in most places, guidance the agency said would allow life to begin to return to normal.
    Dr. David Doudy, an epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins University, said the CDC guidance was motivated by a change in infection patterns. "We're seeing this doubling in the number of cases every 10 days or so," he said.
    (Production: Angela Moore, Andrew Hofstetter)
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