Dr. Fauci Says Fully Vaxxed People Should Still 'Go The Extra Mile' And Wear Face Masks In Low Vacc

[appalachiablue]

Source: MSN/Insider

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said even people who are fully vaccinated should still "go the extra mile" to ensure protection in areas with low vaccination rates. "Even as good as they are and highly effective, nothing is 100%," Fauci said of vaccines during an interview on NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday morning.

"If you put yourself in an environment in which you have a high level of viral dynamics and a very low level of vaccine, you might want to go the extra step and say: 'When I'm in that area where there's a considerable degree of viral circulation, I might want to go the extra mile to be cautious enough to make sure that I get the extra added level of protection,' Fauci said.

When host Chuck Todd asked about the 10,000 COVID-related deaths the US recorded in June, Fauci emphasized that "no vaccine is perfect," but almost all of the deaths were "avoidable." "If you look at the number of deaths, about 99.2% of them are unvaccinated. About 0.8% are vaccinated.

No vaccine is perfect," Fauci said. "But when you talk about the avoidability of hospitalization and death, Chuck, it's really sad and tragic that most all of these are avoidable and preventable."...


Read more: https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/dr-fauci-says-fully-vaxxed-people-should-still-go-the-extra-mile-and-wear-face-masks-in-low-vaccination-areas/ar-AALLi06

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(Title cut off at the end, should read.. 'Low Vaccination Areas').

Link to tweet

*WATCH*

[msongs]

1. in japan mask wwearing is much more common even without pandemics nt

[bahboo]

2. yes...if they're sick, they're probably wearing a mask in public...

scratched my head on my first visit to Japan, but then felt...shit, this makes sense. Which makes their not so good record with Covid hard to understand...

[Lucky Luciano]

31. Japan has done pretty well all things considered throughout the pandemic.

Last edited Mon Jul 5, 2021, 12:55 PM - Edit history (1)

[IronLionZion]

8. Japan must be so excited for the Olympics

[Happy Hoosier]

82. while true....

... it's not something I would necessarily prefer to emulate. But I respect those who do.

[Skittles]

3. no shit

anyone with critical thinking skills should be able to understand that it just makes sense to keep masking at this time

[twodogsbarking]

36. You have ruled out a large number of 'mericans.

Thus the problem.

[Skittles]

62. it's not just Trump humpers

just reading DU I get the impression too many so-called "progressives" thought the goal all along was to stop masking, instead of ENDING A PANDEMIC

[twodogsbarking]

79. There are trolls on DU

and they hone in on certain topics. Interesting.

[Roisin Ni Fiachra]

80. Yeh, it ain't rocket science. nt

[Ferrets are Cool]

4. I don't just mask, I double mask.

[appalachiablue]

6. +2. I don't need no stinkin' Covid- the standard,

the Delta and Delta Plus models, or the Long Haul - mild or serious- if I can avoid it.

It's rare to infect vaxxed people, but can happen via asymptomatic and breakthrough cases.

[Grokenstein]

21. Damn right.

"It'll PROBABLY be okay," coming at is does from people who have a financial or political gain in pretending everything's fiiiine, isn't good enough. It's why this crap spread in the first place.

[SheltieLover]

26. Pls make sure you are wearing N95 or KN95

Easy to find & cheap right now.

[Ferrets are Cool]

67. Thank you and yes.

The bottom one is K95 and the top is fabric. I know it's not as good but....

[SheltieLover]

68. Cannot be too safe these days, imo!

[localroger]

5. I have probably had COVID and have also been fully vaxxed

That said, I live in a red state and if I'm in a place where nobody else is masking, I'm not going to either. It's not my funeral. I am not perfectly safe and can become infected, but it's very unlikely that I will get very sick or die. Over 90% of the hospital cases for COVID are now the unvaccinated, though they are now about half the population. That should be a Clue. If I am in the presence of someoene who is masking or in a place that has a mask policy, I will mask, because it is the polite and considerate thing to do. But I am not going to antagonize people who should know better to protect them. I have several coworkers in this class and I've let them know how I feel. I don't feel they are afraid of the vaccine. I feel they are lazy. At this point they are like people who don't wear seat belts. It's no longer my problem and not something I can control.

[WA-03 Democrat]

7. I feel similarly

I will keep encouraging people to get it but I am at the point where if you don’t have it is because you don’t want it. The irony of irony is this going to hurt republicans disproportionately because they politicized a plague. They did this because they foolishly thought this would hurt urban areas far more. Stable genius thought he could BS a virus. They turned a respiratory air borne virus from “we” thing into a “me” thing.

If trump would have…man, I was about to type “Trump” and did the “right thing” in the same sentence. How absurd. That could never happen.

[pstokely]

33. what about a school?

kids under 12 and teens of anti-vaxxer parents might not have any choice

[localroger]

39. Most schools will have policies. As with a business that asks me to mask, I would follow that.

The situation with kids is trickier. At the outset they were much less likely to get sick anyway, and in a few states teens can self-consent even if their parents are buttheads. If I had kids they would have been vaccinated at the earliest possible moment after they became eligible, but I avoided that problem by not reproducing. I have had inconsiderate coworkers bring diseases other than COVID home and thence to work to infect me from their own offspring at school, and when I registered my annoyance they just shrugged like whatchagonnado. (Don't come to work when you have a 103 fever ya think?) To a certain extent you can't do anything about people like that.

[HUAJIAO]

42. Why do you feel you would be antagonizing people by wearing a mask where others were not?

Why are you worried by what other people think?

You have made a choice, and a perfectly valid one.

[localroger]

58. In some areas of the country it is seen as an affront.

New Orleans is not so bad about that but many of the surrounding more rural areas where I have to go to do work are. The risk of being assaulted because someone takes offense is nontrivial.

[HUAJIAO]

69. I can understand that... Stay safe, in more ways than one...

[Ms. Toad]

48. Wearing a mask also protects you.

And, as Fauci pointed out, it is in those places where vaccination rate (and mask wearing) is low that fully vaccinated people should still be masking for their own protection.

[localroger]

59. Not really all that much

It was made pretty clear six months ago that for the most part masks protect other people from you, not vice-versa. And having both had the disease and the vaccine and not gotten very sick from either, I'm just not all that worried about my own risk from COVID any more. I am much more worried about the risk that some redneck asshole will decide that I am a liberal punching bag.

[Ms. Toad]

60. Mask weaering protects the wearer

almost as much as the J&J vaccine (70% as effective as not wearing a mase), based on research completed in November.

You are relying on old data, which was never consistent with research from outside of the US even at the time the misinfiormation was beng propogated by the CDC, and which has since been disproven.

[localroger]

61. Well, the guidance has definitely been inconsistent

What has been consistent for me is that I almost certainly had the disease (with the symptom joint pain, which we didn't know was an index symptom for COVID when I had it last April) and I've had the Moderna vaccine and I didn't have a reaction from either of them. So I think the protecting myself thing is covered. I might catch a variant but it's unlikely I will have a bad reaction to that either, since it's your own immune system and not the virus itself that causes those reactions and mine obviously doesn't do that. So yeah, I could become contagious for a couple of weeks and probably not even know it, which is a thing that drives the epidemiologists a little batty. But I'm looking at the much more tangible risk that some asshole will decide to pick a fight with me because I'm the only person in the grocery store wearing a mask. That is a very real possibility in this part of the country. If I am in a place like a school or hospital or other business with a mask policy and I know they will back me up for following their rule, I will mask. But it's not worth it in other general public situations at this point.

[Ms. Toad]

63. Only inconsistent if you were relying on pre-digested edicts.

If you were reviewing the literature directly, it has been clear since March 2020 that masks are an effective means of mitigating tranmission.

As for your personal risk - a number of people who were repeatdly infected had significatly more disabling infections the second time around. Not all, but enough that it is clear you can't rely on prior infection as an indicator of anticipate severity of future infections.

Same with breakthrogh cases - there was both a death an either 2 or three long-haul cases reported on DU by people who were fully vaccinated at the time they contracted COVID.

Employing layers of protection takes very little effort - and voluntarily being a cog in the variant factory seems, to me, to be irresponsible. As does making it more likely that you will expose any 0-11 year olds who are currently prohibited from being vaccinated.

You will do what you will do. But I'm just grateful that voices with more authority than mine are finally waking up to reality.

[localroger]

64. Well yes, there are 'a number' of breakthrough cases

...that have been bad. I will even concede that that number isn't zero. There are a number of people who are allergic to the vaccines. There are a number of people who will get in automobile accidents on the way to the vaccination drop point and be killed. None of those numbers is zero. All of them are vanishingly small though with regard to a US population of 300,000,000+. There is no such thing as complete safety. I drive across the longest bridge across open water in the world, the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway, for the privilege of living in a relatively low-crime area but working where my job is. The odds that I will end up in the water one day are not zero. I live with that.

When making decisions it is important to ask not whether the number is zero, which it never is, but just what the number is. And on the issue of masking those numbers have been manipulated all over the place by various entities, including the putative Good Guys, throughout the course of all this. I have made my position clear; if I am around you and you want me to mask, I will mask. If I am in your business and you want me to mask, I will mask. But if I am in a crowd of unmasked people half of whom are not vaccinated I am not going to be the outlier who risks getting into a fight by masking. That is also a number that is not zero, and in my estimation it's a lot greater than my risk of getting a life-threatening case of COVID at this point in my life. I was in line to get on the waiting list for the vaccine the first day I was eligible. (Turned out to be Moderna, second shot on April 2, 2021.) I know people who got sick from the vaccine but I did it anyway. My take on that is, if your body had a bad reaction to the vaccine which just makes those proteins for a few hours, you probably really needed the vaccine because your reaction to the actual infection would probably not have been fun.

I don't know where you are getting your information but what I have seen has all suggested that masking is mostly for the benefit of other people, not yourself, which makes sense based on the simple mechanics of how masks operate. You still have to inhale whether masked or not but the mask does prevent your own body fluids from being ejected as far from your body as they might otherwise be. Makes sense. Someone else sneezes on my mask I'm probably still going to inhale their droplets, but if I sneeze my droplets are going to at least be slowed down a lot. So yeah, if you want me to mask around you I understand that.

But if I'm in a crowd of yahoos that don't care and where at least one is likely to make a case that I'm a punching bag liberal because I'm fulfilling their stereotype, I'm not going there. I don't need to. The chances that I will get really sick at this point are vanishingly small and personally masking is not likely to change that much. (Ironically, one of my coworkers did bring a case of the good ol' flu to my workplace via his rugrats and their school, and came to work even though he had a 103F fever and I did catch that. Gotta love the irony after a year of having my temperature taken every time I entered an industrial facility. I finally actually did have a fever and it wasn't even COVID.)

It is quite possible that because of this prepoderance of stupidity we will have another spike with the full hospitals, closures, and universal masking requirements, in which case I'll obviously comply. But that's not the case at the moment, and you have to evaluate the risks you are willing to take. I'm much more worried about being sucker punched at the grocery store than ending up in the hospital with the virus right now.

[Ms. Toad]

65. My information comes from reviewing literature in medical/scientific journals.

Preferably peer-reviewed research - but things change so much that those are available. Informtation on the effectiveness of mask was avaialble at least as early as March 2020.

But here's when the CDC finally woke up.

Cloth masks act as "source control" to block virus particles exhaled by the wearer and provide "filtration for personal protection" by blocking incoming infectious droplets from others, the CDC said in its new guidance.

The new guidance cites a number of studies showing that masks reduce the risk of transmitting or catching the virus by more than 70% in various instances. One study revealed mutual mask-use helped prevent two infected hair stylists from transmitting the virus to 67 clients who were later interviewed. Another followed infected people who spent more than 10 hours on flights without infecting other passengers when masks were used.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/11/10/health/masks-cdc-updated-guidance/index.html

You are focusing on droplets - but COVID is spread primariliy by aerosolized matter. That aerosolized matter is expelled when you breathe, when you talk, etc. So the risk is far less sneezed droplets - and much more normal respiration that lingers in the air, and spreads farther. What you inhale is filtered through your mask.

Your risk right now is about 19.2% of what it was before vaccinaton adn befor the Delta variant based on the same level of exposure. (95% effectiveness = 5 breakthrough cases for 100 in unvaccinated; 60% increase in infection rate => 160 cases for the same exposure; reduced effectiveness - 12% x 160 cases = 19.2 cases)

So being vaccinated reduces your risk a tad over 80% - compared to your March 2020 risk level - but not the miniscule risk touted based on the LA snapshot, or even the 95% based on he contagion level of original COVID and the effectiveness against that original variant.

[IronLionZion]

9. I'm sure plenty of unvaccinated people are having parties this weekend

some of which may be indoors for air conditioning. Good luck with that

[LovingA2andMI]

22. They did for Memorial Day, Easter, Mother's Day, Father's DayAny Birthday Event up to this point....

n/t

[Sapient Donkey]

10. Are those of us who are vaccinated more likely to be carriers?

or does it get zapped by our bodies before it can become an issue for ourselves or others?

Today I was around my mom who is only half vaccinated because she apparently had a bad reaction to her first shot. She says her doctor told her to hold off on the second one. I don't know if that's true or not, but she is allergic to everything so it doesn't seem too far fetched. She is also one of those Trump supporters who believes everything she hears on Fox News and occasionally NewsMax. So, I dunno. Either way, I was worried about being around her because I'm a bit unsure if I could be a carrier and not know it. It's worrisome because people are letting their guards down, and I'm afraid she might too, or those who around her more will be careless themselves.

I've been telling her to get the other vaccine, but she insists her doctor said to wait.

[IronLionZion]

14. Zapped

you're unlikely to infect others but you can search through the CDC's long list of FAQs online to be sure about any other concerns.

Might want to get a second opinion on the second shot for your mom. A bad reaction could just be her immune system fighting off what it thinks is the virus.

[Sapient Donkey]

15. I was looking around and found lots of conflicting information

Like I recall hearing cases of people who are vaccinated getting COVID, but the amount of sickness is much more mild. I should go see what the current information is on the CDC site.

As for my mom, I'm not sure I can do much to convince her either way.

[Ms. Toad]

23. Probably less likely.

Being a carrier is tied to having the disease.

Assuming you had the mRNA vaccine (Pfizer/Moderna), based on the same exposure to the Delta variant that would have caused 100 cases in unvaccination population pre-Delta, you have a 19.2% chance of being a breakthrough Delta case. You may be asymptomatic and pass the disease on to your mom.

Since she is a Trump supporter I assume she is not wearing a mask. If that is true you should probably wear a mask (or see her only outdoors) for your own protection, as well as for hers.

[Sapient Donkey]

34. She does wear masks. So there is at least that.

She actually doesn't go to a whole lot of places, but my step-father does. He is fully vaccinated with the Pfizer vaccine, but he's a lot more stubborn. While he thankfully wore a mask for the past year, I don't know if he still is now when he isn't forced to.

[Bucky]

47. It annoys me how people are still thinking of masks as personal protection.

Wearing a mask in public is giving your mom only a slight marginal chance of preventing infection. Literally between 2% and 5% added protection. What protects her is (1) keeping socially distanced (6-10 feet away from any one else), (2) socializing out doors, (3) keeping her immune system fueled up (with exercise, zinc, vitamin C, garlic, turmeric, ginger, etc), and (4) other people wearing masks.

Masking is superimportant, but it's not for protecting the mask-wearer. It's for protecting other people from yourself in case you are already infected and liable to transmit the virus to others.

[Ms. Toad]

49. That is very old, discredited information.

Masks protect both the wearer and those around the wearer.

For some unknown reason, after we moved away from don't wear masks because the don't help (sub vocce: we are afraid that medical personnel will not have enough to protect themselves), we moved to another lie: Be altruistic - wear mask to protect others (sub vocce: we know you believe you are invincible, but maybe we can convince you to protect others).

The reality is that masks ALSO protect the wearer. Yes they provide slightly better protection for those around the wearer, but the difference is not significant.

Here's the CDC finally acknowleding reality:

Another study highlighted by the CDC found that among 1,000 people contact-traced in Thailand, those who reported always wearing a mask during high-risk exposures had a greater than 70% reduced risk of becoming infected compared with those who didn't wear masks under those circumstances.

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/11/11/933903848/wear-masks-to-protect-yourself-from-the-coronavirus-not-only-others-cdc-stresses

So masks are equivalent to the J&J vaccine for the wearer.

[IronLionZion]

52. That contributed to confusion and distrust

people want truth and simple guidance that is easy to understand and follow. I would hope there are a lot of lessons learned from this experience.

[Ms. Toad]

55. I'm not seeing many yet.

A lot of people were alarmed at the CDC position on masks for people who had been vaccinated. It seemed to many to be designed to reward vaccinated individuals in a way that was not based in a sound evaluation of the impact of that guidance on the observed real-life behavior of those who have consistently rejected masks, or of the reality that 15% of the population cannot yet be vaccinated.

This is not Dr. Fauci's first attempt to belatedly inject caution - albeit the first was only to express surprise that the CDC statement on masks was widely being misinterpreted to mean no one needed to wear masks.

Now that concerns about breakthrough cases are increasing as Delta rises and it is clear that there is a decreased effectiveness of even the best vaccines against the Delta variant, Fauci, at least, is acknowledging that the reward failed to induce more vaccination. Fauci is now acknowledging that more layers of protection are better than a single layer (vaccination).

Unfortunately, that acknowledgment comes - once again - after the genie is out of the bottle.

[IronLionZion]

56. People don't trust the guidance and feel confused by it

A lot of businesses were taken by surprise as they were allowed to open to 100% indoor capacity without much notice and dropped their mask mandates. So each of them had to decide on implementing their own rules, and I've seen tremendous variance even on the same block in my city.

Customers get predictably irritated by the inconsistency and take it out on workers. It sucks.

[Ms. Toad]

57. Definitely sucks.

Since the orders were formally removed, I'm just taking the steps I need to in order to protect myself.

Prior to that I did expect stores to enforce the triply-mandated (state, city, county) mask orders - and while I tried to get to the managers rather than front line, and farther up the chain if possible - I had little patience for stores that were not even making an attempt to comply with the mandate.

But now - while I am cranky with stores that are not even making an attempt to impose masking requirements on unvaccinated individuals - absent state/county/city support there is absolutely no point in pestering front line workers.

[wnylib]

25. Dr. Feigl-Deng says that asymptomatic

Last edited Mon Jul 5, 2021, 02:43 AM - Edit history (1)

vaccinated people with breakthrough infections CAN infect others. So he recommends that vaccinated people wear masks, especially if they are around children or people who are unable to be vaccinated or benefit from vaccinations due to health issues, e.g. cancer patients.

[appalachiablue]

27. Absolutely, spread the word

[Maggiemayhem]

43. This x 1000.

[SheltieLover]

28. Please read post #4 in this thread

Harvard epidemiologist, Dr. Ding tweets, graciously compiled & posted for us by Rhiannon.

More contageous than smallpox. Cloth masks no longer good enough. Fully vaxed, even asymptomatic infections are contageous, according to this expert.



https://www.democraticunderground.com/100215572903

[HUAJIAO]

45. Dr Feigl-Ding is miles ahead of Fauci, in my view.

The decision (locally/nationally) to 'drop masks' is about to be a freakin' disaster.....
When I heard that I was just stunned... The stupidity of it is breath-taking...

Fauci seems to be wanting to please people, not frighten people.... jeesh....

[BigmanPigman]

11. Friends called to wish me Happy B-Day and we

discussed masking. Both are highly educated, professional women living in S. CA and PA. Both told me that they still mask up, even though fully vaccinated. No one can trust the unvaxxed to wear a mask so this is the realistic route to take.

[Sapient Donkey]

13. The anti-vaxxers and anti-maskers like to criticize those who are vaxxed and wearing masks

but they don't seem to understand that those masks the vaxxed people are wearing are being worn mostly to protect those anti-vaxxer unmasked people who are doing the criticizing.

[BigmanPigman]

19. It seems like the 12 and under group

will be the most at risk for getting Covid from an infected adult, spreading it to other kids and their unvaxxed families. I am so grateful that I no longer teach K-6.

[appalachiablue]

30. Very glad to hear your friends are masking,

from opposite sides of the country too.

Nobody can trust the unvaxxed to mask, and how do we trust someone who says they've been vaxxed but they haven't.

A very happy birthday to you! as well.

What a great holiday for a birthday- you and Yankee Doodle Dandy/ Jimmy Cagney/George Cohan.

[BigmanPigman]

35. Thanks! My day was yesterday but calls keep coming,

in place of cards.

The one person who shares my B-Day and birth year is someone who I am not terribly fond of...Tom Cruise. I am grateful that is all we share. I am not a fan of Scientology and what they do to women.

I love watching Cagney dance in that film...a natural "hoofer" from Vaudeville days. He danced like he weighed 2 ounces.

[DURHAM D]

12. Meanwhile on my tv I keep hearing that-

We are back.

Get the party going.

Las Vegas is open.

We are back to normal.

Get out of the house.


WHAT SHIT

[IronLionZion]

16. We all make our own choices

There are plenty of folks who want to party and businesses who want their money.

Getting out of the house is great but I still steer clear of crowded indoor spaces.

[SheltieLover]

29. And the CDC has stopped reporting breakthrough infections, only hospitalizations & deaths

Makes me very uneasy.

[Ms. Toad]

50. Yup-

Tossing away critical information, in my opinion.

[SayitAintSo]

81. Me too

I wish the medical community would refocus efforts on treatment plans for people that do have covid. In my opinion there hasn't been enough effort placed in exploring all those options, publicizing them and making them available. Some methods have been politicized and discounted and in my opinion that has been a great disservice.

P.. S. I'm a Sheltie lover too 🧡

[BigmanPigman]

20. Bill Maher expresses the same ideas

and gets shot down every time.

[Maggiemayhem]

44. You do realize he has been an anti vaccine proponent for years

and therefore contributed to today’s hesitancy.

[SergeStorms]

18. Absolutely correct.

I mask up whenever entering any building other than than my own home, and my daughter's home.

I live in a blue state, 70+% vaccinated, but everyone is acting like COVID-19 has been vanquished. It hasn't been, and is far from being so, even in a 70+% vaccinated blue state.

I have two co- comorbidities, and my grandchildren aren't old enough to be vaccinated yet. If I ever got the virus and infected my grandchildren I could never forgive myself.

So yeah, I'll be wearing a mask, no matter what, until this virus is wiped entirely from the planet.

[Ms. Toad]

24. I hope the people who have said they will wear a mask when Dr. Fauci tells them to are listening. nt

[pstokely]

32. how low?

and many schools have removed mask mandates for indoor summer activities, I in place not too far from the Ozarks with slightly higher vax rates, I still see some kids indoors without any face coverings, accompanied by unmasked parents

[Ms. Toad]

71. The recommendation wasn't just limited to places with low vaccinations.

It extended to anyplace of increased exposure - which, from my perspective includes any indoor space (especially crowded ones), and any place Delta is circulating.

[twodogsbarking]

37. Lots of travel and partying for Independence Day.

Didn't see even one mask on the TV celebrations.

[J_William_Ryan]

38. "...in areas with low vaccination rates."

That would be Third World America: the red states.

[appalachiablue]

40. Those low vax regions and also he goes on

to say 'environment' which to me means he's referring to any situation or place that might have a high level of viral dynamics and a low level of vaccines--- beyond purely geographic areas.

My area and community are well vaccinated, but there are environments- stores, businesses and events that I'll avoid, or use a mask if I go there.

Who knows if an unmasked person is vaxxed or not?

I've already been lied to once, by maintenance workers that did a surprise show up at our home. Both weren't wearing masks. Later I asked if they were vaccinated; one said yes, the other stated no. On the 2nd visit, the no worker told me the other employee wasn't vaccinated. So he lied.
--------
Dr. Fauci:

"If you put yourself in an environment in which you have a high level of viral dynamics and a very low level of vaccine, you might want to go the extra step and say: 'When I'm in that area where there's a considerable degree of viral circulation, I might want to go the extra mile to be cautious enough to make sure that I get the extra added level of protection,' Fauci said.

[Elessar Zappa]

41. My area has 70%+ vaccine rate so

I’ll continue unmasked unless someone or a business asks me to. I’ve evaluated the risks and am ok with my choice. I will wear one if I have to go to a low vaxx area for a crowded concert or something like that.

[nuxvomica]

46. It's hardly an extra mile; more like a few feet

Seriously, it's not like we have to hunker down in foxholes and dodge bullets to fight this battle. I consider it like brushing my teeth, watching both ways before crossing the street, tying my shoes (which I've never been good at but I do it). I get funny looks in the supermarket now, where hardly anyone masks, but it doesn't bother me, though I'm grateful when I see the rare other mature adult wearing theirs. A hero can be more than just a sandwich, they can be people who abide this teeny-tiny little discipline.

[Ms. Toad]

51. +1000 n/t

[appalachiablue]

54. Luv it, thanks! What a 'sacrifice' ?!

[BradAllison]

53. We were told to mask because we could make others sick

I told the anti masker people I was doing it for their benefit. People wearing masks were still under greater danger to contract the virus from an unmasked person.

Now that I'm vaxxed, I'm starting to wonder why I need to still carry the slack?

[Ms. Toad]

72. That's very old information

Part of the series of misstatements the government made around masks.

It has been known that masks protect the wearer since at least mid-March 2020. The CDC finally got around to acknowledging it in November 2020.

So (1) you're protecting yourself from increased exposure from idiots who are little variant factories and who are running around unmasked - because with the combination of increased infectiousness and decreased effectiveness your vaccine is only about 80% effective (assuming Pfizer or Moderna), taking into account 60% increased infection rate, and decreased 88% effectiveness and (2) you are protecting the 15% of the population not yet eligible for vaccination.

[appalachiablue]

86. It would be very helpful if more people

knew about the true purpose of masking for Covid, rather than the guidelines that the CDC first came out with. They should clarify this and help dispel the confusion.

As to Covid vaccines, do you know if peoples response to them indicates the strength of their immune system and/or the effectiveness of the shot?

I ask because I hardly had any reaction to both Moderna doses, only slight soreness around the injection site for a few days. I read somewhere months ago that a stronger reaction is a 'good sign,' and that the vaccine 'was taking.' If so has my immune system weakened significantly at this point. Other than added weight from this crazy pandemic year I have no chronic health conditions.

Years ago when I received flu shots, in my 30s and 40s I experienced an almost immediate reaction- mostly lightheadedness and spaced out for a few hours. After I asked health staff to split the dose into 2 sessions the problem was eliminated. Thanks in advance.

[Ms. Toad]

87. I haven't seen any confirmation of that thought

Here's an article from Mayo that suggests strength of reaction isn't tied tightly, at least, to immunity.

Dr. Poland says a reaction does not mean anything is wrong. "It's an indication that your body is revved up, prepared to do battle against what it thinks is a foreign invader." If people have less of a reaction, it does not mean they aren't developing an immune response, Dr. Poland emphasizes.

. . .

"Each of our bodies releases different amounts of chemicals or immune signals," Dr. Poland explains further. "One body might release more than what's needed, causing the physical reactions, and another body might release exactly the right amount of immune signals. It's what we've called the 'Goldilocks phenomenon.' Not too much, not too little, but just right."

https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/side-effects-or-lack-of-side-effects-after-being-vaccinated-for-covid-19/

[appalachiablue]

88. Thanks for the info. glad to see this.

I feel more assured that my immune system is functioning normally.

[VarryOn]

66. This dude needs to pick a story and stick with it...

He's all over the map on masking. He confuses folks.

A damn 80-year-old needs to be retired anyway.

I'm vaxxed but believe he's not helping nowadays.

[myohmy2]

70. I'm fully vaccinated...

...and I've never stopped wearing my mask in public...this pandemic isn't over, not by a long shot...

...even if I can survive the COVIes they still can make me sick and miserable and I don't need to be sick and miserable...

...it's simple, don't travel through or visit low vaccinated states, areas, people...save and protect yourself from the COVID enabling stupid fucks...

...you can offer trumpkins a vaccine but you can't make them take it...and when all is said and done and the body bags pile up, they'll blame us for not forcing them to take the vaccine...

...they'd rather trump and his bleach...

[Rhiannon12866]

74. I agree! Well said!

[Rhiannon12866]

73. Here's the entire interview with Dr. Fauci:

Meet The Press Broadcast (Full) - July 4th, 2021 - (Examination of Covid response with Dr. Fauci)
https://www.democraticunderground.com/1017665496

[appalachiablue]

75. Thanks for adding this R.

[Rhiannon12866]

77. Silly me, I thought I did it yesterday.

I caught the beginning of it early in the day and the numbers for June really hit me! So I made it a point to watch the entire repeat. Those who are crowing that this pandemic is "over" and the country should just "open up!" are in for a rude awakening! Yikes!

[SouthBayDem]

76. Come to think of it, reopening/unmasking should've been contingent on vaccination rates.

Would've incentivized more people to be vaccinated.

I recently listened to NPR's On Point. Science writer Ed Yong, who has written extensively about the pandemic, said: "If you release that information into the world without talk about vulnerable populations, without talk of implementation plans...you create this cultural signal that masks are no longer needed, full stop. If you create guidance that people widely misinterpret, you don't get to blame people for misinterpreting. The problem is in your guidance." (20:01 of audio - via WBUR website or direct MP3 link)

[Rhiannon12866]

78. That is one excellent idea! Why aren't we doing that already?!

My New York county is holding at 63% vaccinated, not great IMO, especially since the vaccine is readily available at numerous sites here - but tourist season just started and the crowds have arrived. I've seen license plates from numerous states with much lower vaccination rates, most recently Florida and South Carolina! Last year at this time, anyone from another state arriving in New York was required to quarantine. This year, with the vaccine available, we should require vaccination for visitors - and we need more local participation, too, there is no excuse.

[Ms. Toad]

83. Absolutely -

which is what some of us have been saying (and getting blaste for) since the guidance came out.

Fauci honestly seemed shocked when people heard the full stop and everyone just tossed their masks. I'm really mystified as to how the CDC could have put out that guidance without recognizing the blatantly obvious misinterpretaton that occurred immediately.

[CTyankee]

84. I'm happy to wear a mask! I feel safer from lots of other germs, stuff that I could catch. As a

senior I figure I am always at risk for something.

[roamer65]

85. Better yet, states with high vaccination rates should stop all traffic from low rate ones.

Yes, it’s perfectly legal and states can use their National Guard units to do it.

It was done in the 19th century during a yellow fever outbreak.