Mask Up and Get Back to Church: CDC Endorses Indoor Worship After Vaccination

Administrator's Note: The CDC is  NOT saying that fully-vaccinated people can dispense with a face mask when they attend a church service. Gathering at full capacity is NOT a safe activity for unvaccinated people. The CDC has not changed its recommendations that unvaccinated people wear face masks and social distance at in-person church services or that churches limit the size of the gatherings that they attend and make sure the room in which they are held is adequately ventilated. What the CDC is saying is that a church can go to full capacity if the entire congregation (and visitors) are fully-vaccinated. Churches will need to verify that the members of their congregations are indeed fully-vaccinated and any visitors too. They may need to require attendees to produce proof of vaccination.   Alternately churches might have to hold separate church services for vaccinated and unvaccinated people. What I anticipate is a lot of confusion stemming from the different guidance for vaccinated and unvaccinated people. 

Gathering at full-capacity is now listed among safe activities for people who have gotten the COVID-19 shot.

The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention loosened the agency’s social distancing recommendations this week, announcing that fully vaccinated people who wear masks can safely attend many indoor events such as worship services.

CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky made the announcement Tuesday during a White House press briefing, where she outlined a number of indoor activities people who wear masks and have received vaccines against COVID-19 can participate in safely—including worship.

“As we gather more and more data on the real-world efficacy of vaccines, we know that masked, fully vaccinated people can safely attend worship services inside,” she said.

Walensky also said that masked, fully vaccinated people can safely go to an indoor restaurant or bar, and “even participate in an indoor exercise class.”

The CDC continues to recommend that fully vaccinated people use masks for indoor activities such as singing in an indoor chorus, going to a movie theater or eating indoors at a restaurant. As for outdoor activities, the CDC generally only recommends masks among fully vaccinated people if they plan on attending a crowded outdoor event such as a concert. Read More

Also See:
Where Two or More Are Vaccinated: Advice for Churches in 2021
15 of the safest activities for the fully vaccinated -- with and without face masks
Interim Public Health Recommendations for Fully Vaccinated People
CDC's updated Covid-19 guidance for summer camps emphasizes getting vaccinated, wearing masks and staying distanced
Fact check: No, interacting with a vaccinated person won't cause miscarriage or menstrual changes - this is the latest craziness circulating on social media on the internet

Miami school bars vaccinated teachers from seeing students - This is one of the reasons that the United States has the highest infection rates in the world