Centers for Disease Control and Prevention wants to play it safe even for people who are fully vaccinated. The agency is still trying to learn more about the vaccine before they allow people to go back to their pre-pandemic activities. The CDC still wants people to refrain from traveling even if they already have the complete doses of the vaccine. It says on its site: “delay travel and stay home to protect yourself and others from COVID-19”.
However, the agency announced that fully vaccinated individuals can already gather indoors without masks. They also announced that it is now safe to visit households with unvaccinated individuals. But as far as travel is concerned, it still wants people to stay put at least for the meantime.
Ramped Up Vaccination
Pharmaceutical giants such as Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, and Merck are among those that stepped up with their COVID19 vaccine. The Biden administration currently vaccinates as many as 2 million Americans per day. It was also announced that there will be enough vaccines by May for every American adult.
Airline Industry Against CDC Travel Guidelines
The airline industry reacts to this current CDC travel guideline. According to industry group Airlines for America, vaccinated individuals pose a low risk for other passengers. On top of that, heavily filtered air combined with mandated mask-wearing attenuates the risks further. It says in a statement that “this layered approach significantly reduces risk”.
CDC remains adamant with its stance that people should still avoid traveling. CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said that “every time there’s a surge in travel, we have surge in cases in this country”. Health experts are concerned that spring break travel will cause a rise in the number of COVID19 cases.
This is already the second time that the airline industry opposed Biden administration’s travel restrictions. The first time was against the attempt to get local air travelers tested.
