Fully vaccinated people should still wear masks: WHO

GBNEWS24 DESK//

The World Health Organization (WHO) is urging fully vaccinated people to continue wearing face masks and follow physical distancing measures as the highly infectious Delta variant spurs new COVID-19 outbreaks around the world.

At a press briefing in Geneva on Friday, WHO officials said masks should stay on, even for those who have received both doses of a vaccine series.

“Vaccine alone won’t stop community transmission,” said Mariangela Simao, the WHO’s assistant director-general for access to medicines and health products. “People need to continue to use masks consistently, be in ventilated spaces, hygiene, physical distance, avoid crowding.”

Simao said public health measures continue to be “extremely important” as countries cope with outbreaks of the COVID-19 Delta variant, despite high vaccination rates.

“People cannot feel safe just because they’ve had the two doses. They still need to protect themselves,” Simao said.

While COVID-19 vaccines have shown to be effective in preventing severe disease and death, including against the Delta variant, WHO officials say it is a “dangerous variant” and fully vaccinated people can be part of its transmission chain if measures aren’t maintained.

The news comes as countries continue to ease public health measures and offer new guidelines for those who are fully vaccinated.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced on May 13 that fully vaccinated Americans do not need to wear masks outdoors and can avoid wearing them indoors in most places.