Congress relinquished its mandate for a mask before the president Joe BidenThe address of the State of the Union, a move that officials say is a response from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to publish new coronavirus guidelines last week.
The doctor’s office announced the change in policy on Sunday, noting that “individuals can choose to disguise themselves at any time, but this is no longer a requirement.”
IN Capitol the move comes just a day before Washington’s term expires on Monday, and as many states and local authorities began implementing the new CDC guidance and lifting of mandate masks indoors and in schools.
He is also following new guidelines issued by the CDC on Friday that will remove mask recommendations for 70 percent of Americans.
According to the new CDC system, Washington, D.C., is already at a “green level” or area that is considered a low risk of spreading coronavirus, which allows for a reduction in prevention measures.
Congress relinquished its mandate for masks ahead of President Joe Biden’s address on the state of the Union, a move officials say was a response to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which issued new guidelines for coronavirus last week.
Calm guidelines are coming as Biden aims to use the address to Congress to highlight the progress made against COVID over the past year, including vaccinations and therapies, and to direct the country to a “new phase” of the virus’s response. driven by emergency measures and more like life before the pandemic.
Wearing masks will still be a personal choice in Congress, and special precautions will be taken for Biden’s speech on Tuesday, which, unlike last year’s joint address, will be open to all members of Congress.
“I think you’ll see that it looks a lot more like a normal state of the union than a joint address by the president,” White House Chief of Staff Ron Klein said Saturday. “It will seem like the most normal thing people have seen in Washington in a long time.”
Seats for Biden’s first address to a joint congressional session last April were limited to about 200 – about 20% of the usual capacity for a presidential presentation – and White House officials worried the repetition would be a dissonant image of the president’s message. in order to deliver to the American people.
Although masks will be optional, all those present in the Union State will have to take a COVID test before entering the hall before the address.
Changes in the Capitol’s operative posture also state that “people with symptoms, a positive test, or exposure to someone with COVID-19 must wear a properly fitted high-quality filter mask (KN95 or N95).”
Multi-layered coronavirus protection measures, such as a focus on vaccination and daily health screening inventories, will continue for members and staff of Congress.
The doctor’s office announced the change in policy on Sunday, noting that “individuals may choose to disguise themselves at any time, but this is no longer a requirement.”
Calm guidelines come as Biden (pictured in the White House on Friday) aims to use the congressional address to highlight progress against COVID-19 over the past year, including vaccinations and therapies, and to steer the country towards a “new phase of the viral response, which is not driven by emergency measures and looks more like life before a pandemic
Mandatory camouflage has been in effect for most of the past two years and has become a guerrilla hotspot on Capitol Hill.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced initial guidelines earlier this month from the sergeant’s service, which included a threat that violating social distancing and masking instructions during the event “would lead to the removal of those present.”
The change before Biden’s speech will avoid a potentially devastating display of national tension and frustration as Biden tries to push the country out of the pandemic.
It also eased fears of some of Biden’s allies as they prepared for potentially devastating Republican protests against politics.
Some GOP lawmakers have amassed thousands of dollars in fines for violating mandates to wear masks on the Chamber’s floor.
The revised CDC guidelines, published on Friday, moved the number of U.S. counties considered “high” or “significant” risk to 30% (right) from 95% (left). The first map is the nation’s counties, according to initial estimates, while the second is a revised version presented by the CDC on Friday afternoon.
The CDC compiles its recommendations for people to live safely with COVID according to their counties, which are considered at risk.
This move comes as the number of cases across the country has fallen sharply since their peak in early January, with the omicron variant proving less likely than earlier strains to cause death or serious illness, especially in vaccinated and boosted individuals.
An average of 75,549 people register a COVID infection every day in America. That’s a 35 percent drop last week and a 92 percent drop after Omicron’s jump peaked at 800,000 cases a day in mid-January.
Deaths are also finally starting to decline. An average of 1,742 Americans die from COVID every day, a 20 percent drop in the last week – from Friday – and a 30 percent drop for the peak of Omicrons’ jump, when about 2,500 Americans succumbed to the virus every day.
According to recently revised CDC estimates, only 28.2% of the American population – living in 37% of counties – is still advised to disguise themselves in closed, public places.
These counties are scattered throughout America, but include the entire state of West Virginia and much of its neighbor Kentucky. Oregon and Montana also have large parts of the state classified as “high risk.”
An average of 75,549 people register a COVID infection every day in America. That’s a 35 percent drop last week and a 92 percent drop after Omicron’s jump peaked at 800,000 cases a day in mid-January.
Deaths are also finally starting to decline. An average of 1,742 Americans die from COVID each day, a 20% drop in the last week – from Friday – and a 30% drop at the peak of Omicrons’ jump, when about 2,500 Americans succumbed to the virus each day
The number of hospitalizations with COVID is also declining
Just under 30 percent of Americans live in a “low” risk area, with 39.6 percent of Americans suffering from a “medium” risk of COVID in their communities.
The “essential” categorization has been removed, as if joining a high one.
While state and county officials still have the power to set mandates and regulations for their own jurisdiction, many, especially in the blue states, usually follow the CDC’s guidelines when making such decisions.
For areas that are considered low risk, the CDC recommends that only people be vaccinated, but otherwise they can live their lives safely.
A person living in a place considered to be at medium risk can also live normally, unless he is immunocompromised or has other serious comorbidities in which he must disguise himself in public and talk to his doctor. for other potential solutions to protect.
The CDC still advises people, including students, to wear masks when the risk of COVID is high.
Dr Rochelle Valensky, director of the agency, said the new guidelines allow Americans to feel safe about wearing masks and other restrictions so far, when COVID is not as much of a threat as it was in the past.
This also leaves the door open for employees to return masks and other restrictions in the future at a time when the pandemic situation is becoming more severe, without overreacting to mild cases.