US lifts guidance, but not everyone ready to give up masks

US lifts guidance, but not everyone ready to give up masks

A day after the top US health agency eased COVID-19 mask restrictions, many people could still be seen walking around the capital Washington wearing face coverings. Among them was a student, Chloe, who said she was fully vaccinated—but was wearing her black face mask anyway.

“I think the announcement… was definitely a shock to a lot of people. It definitely was a shock to me,” the student, who declined to give her last name, told AFP Friday.

Chloe, 20, viewed the CDC announcement as “hopeful” but said she plans to keep wearing her mask for a while longer.

“If I see more people not wearing masks, it’ll make me feel comfortable not wearing masks,” she said. “And then just seeing the number of people who are vaccinated in the US will definitely help. If that number goes up, I might feel more comfortable taking it off.”

But “it’s really important to recognize that the pandemic’s still going on.” Currently, only 36 percent of people are fully vaccinated in the United States, where the pandemic has killed more than 580,000.

“Yesterday, I was not really into the idea” of going maskless, said Lauren, who wore a white cloth face mask. “Even though I’m vaccinated, what if