Masks are no longer required anywhere on the White House campus for fully vaccinated individuals, says an email that went out to White House staff. According to reporters on the scene, some folks on the grounds have already begun removing their masks. The White House Correspondents Association just issued similar guidance.
The policy change comes as the CDC issues new guidance advising that fully vaccinated individuals can go unmasked in most indoor and outdoor situations. A person is considered fully vaccinated two weeks after the Johnson & Johnson vaccine dose, and two weeks after the second Pfizer or Moderna dose.
Vaccinated individuals must still mask and socially distance when going to doctors, hospitals, or long term care facilities; when in prisons, jails, or homeless shelters; and when traveling on public transportation or in transit hubs.
This guidance does not overrule state, local, or tribal rules and restrictions, and individual businesses and workplaces can still require mask use for fully vaccinated individuals.
Jane is a Chicago transplant who now calls Cleveland Park her home. Before joining Washingtonian, she wrote for Smithsonian Magazine and the Chicago Sun-Times. She is a graduate of Northwestern University, where she studied journalism and opera.
