CDC Amends Face Mask Requirement for Vaccinated Travelers on Public Transportation, Transit Hubs

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will no longer require fully vaccinated travelers to wear a face mask in outdoor areas of transportation conveyances like a ferry deck or on an open-air trolley or while they’re outdoors at transportation hubs such as airports, train stations and bus terminals.

The Face Masks Order does not change for unvaccinated individuals.

“CDC will continue to evaluate the requirements of its Order and determine whether additional changes may be warranted,” the agency stated in an update on Thursday. “While those who are fully vaccinated may resume many activities without wearing a mask, the travel environment presents a unique set of circumstances based on the number and close interaction of travelers (both vaccinated and unvaccinated).”

The new guidance comes one month after the CDC announced that people who have been fully inoculated against COVID-19 no longer need to wear masks or practice social distancing indoors or outdoors in many cases.

Travelers, regardless of vaccination status, are still required to wear face masks while on public transportation, including airplanes traveling into, within or out of the United States and U.S. territories and while indoors at airports as the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has extended the federal mask mandate until September.

The CDC also recently issued new guidance for cruise travel, loosening mask requirements for fully vaccinated passengers and allowing them more freedom during shore excursions.

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According to the latest CDC data, nearly two-thirds of Americans age 18 and older have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, and more than half are now considered fully vaccinated.