Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
“Wednesday is supposed to be the end of pandemic restrictions in Washington state, but most of us are at least a little confused about what exactly reopening means.
What is reopening?
Pretty much everything. Restrictions have been lifted on how many people can dine in a restaurant at one time, on the maximum capacity in bars, churches, concert halls, movie theaters, etc. Businesses are still allowed to set their own standards, as they always have been able to do. (“No shoes, no shirt, no service,” remember?) But the state government is no longer requiring six empty feet between tables or theater seats.
Can we stop wearing masks?
Gov. Jay Inslee announced in May that people who have been fully vaccinated can stop wearing masks and social distancing both indoors and outside. This follows the CDC’s updated guidelines saying people who have been fully vaccinated can safely stop wearing masks, except where required by state or local rules. Exceptions include health care facilities, public transit, schools and shelters. Businesses may still require their customers to wear masks and they may ask for proof of vaccination.
But should you stop wearing a mask?
Washington Health Secretary Dr. Umair Shah says people who have been fully vaccinated are protected from the virus or at least its worst effects – and the chance of them spreading the virus to others is almost zero – so masks are no longer needed. The reality is very different for people who are not vaccinated. Despite the fact that almost 70% of Washingtonians 16 and older have been at least partially vaccinated (68% as of June 20), several variants of the virus continue to spread in Washington and unvaccinated people are still getting sick and dying.
People who have been vaccinated but are at increased risk of complications from the virus should consider wearing a mask indoors in public settings as an extra precaution, state and local health officials have recommended. If your immune system is compromised, your own doctor has likely given you the same advice.
Shah added that parents need to set an example for children who cannot be vaccinated and continue to wear masks in public, even if they are fully vaccinated. As he said during a recent Crosscut event, this is the approach he is using with his children.
Washington isn’t seeing many COVID infections in kids under 11, but they are still at some risk. People 19 and younger make up 2% of Washington’s COVID-related hospitalizations and zero deaths. Vaccine trials for children as young as 6 months are now underway and health officials expect shots to be approved for younger children later this summer or in the early fall.
What about the variants?
Dr. Scott Lindquist, acting state health officer, said three variants are now spreading in Washington state but the existing vaccines appear to be protecting people from all strains currently circulating here.
“Let us worry about the variants,” Shah said. “People can do their part by getting vaccinated.” Both Lindquist and Shah said repeatedly at a news conference this week: People who have been vaccinated can pretty much go about their lives as they did before the pandemic.
The CDC reports research, so far, indicates the vaccines are effective against any version of the coronavirus moving around the United States. But more studies are underway. One thing research has shown, according to the CDC, is that the vaccines are effective at preventing severe illness from COVID-19, as promised.
Is the pandemic over?
“We want to make sure people do not forget the pandemic is not over until it’s truly over,” Shah said. The virus hasn’t run out of hosts yet and until it does, the pandemic isn’t going away. In the two weeks prior to June 24, 242 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 in Washington state, and the state reported nine deaths that day.
Nearly all COVID deaths in the United States are now among the unvaccinated, according to federal data from May analyzed by The Associated Press. As state health officials keep saying, the vaccines appear to be even more effective than the vaccine trials indicated. Vaccinated people accounted for just 0.1% of the 853,000 hospitalizations attributed to COVID-19 in May, the CDC reported. The data collected from 45 states shows 150 of the more than 18,000 people who died from COVID-19 that month had been fully vaccinated, or 0.8% of deaths.
Although no one will be going around the grocery store or movie theater asking unmasked people to show proof of vaccination, state and local health officials are urging unvaccinated people to continue to wear masks indoors, especially among other unvaccinated people. But the more effective way to protect yourself from the virus would be (you guessed it) to get vaccinated.
How can I get the vaccine?
People can find available vaccine appointments at the state Department of Health’s vaccine locator website. They also can call the state’s multilingual telephone hotline number at 800-525-0127. Another resource is the Washington COVID Vaccine Finder, which calls itself a community-driven effort to help Washingtonians find vaccine appointments.
Is it safe to travel?
Vaccinated people can now travel safely, but moving around the country or the world may be one of the most dangerous activities for unvaccinated people. The spread of COVID-19 appears to have slowed in Washington state, because such a large percentage of the population has been vaccinated. But traveling to places where fewer people are fully vaccinated or where the virus is spreading more actively could put both the unvaccinated visitor and the people he or she is visiting at risk, Shah said.
In case you are thinking of a quick trip up to Canada, that border is still closed to most people. People with close family members in Canada may be able to visit, if they can quarantine for two weeks upon arrival.
Can I hug, or shake hands with, an unvaccinated friend?
If you are fully vaccinated, you can hug or shake hands with anyone you want and not worry about ending up in the hospital with coronavirus, Shah said. It’s not safe for unvaccinated people to hug or shake hands with other unvaccinated people but touching the vaccinated is OK.
Shah has taken several opportunities lately to remind people that some lessons learned during the pandemic should guide our actions going forward. Staying home when you’re sick, wearing a mask when you can’t, washing your hands and keeping hand sanitizer handy will all help stop colds, flu and other viruses and germs from spreading.
Will we ever say goodbye to COVID-19?
Nobody knows for sure, but health officials are singing one refrain: When enough people are vaccinated, the virus will run out of hosts and stop spreading. The best way to think of this is it’s like a gladiator game out there,” Lindquist said. “Viruses are competing for people who are unvaccinated, essentially. Shah calls COVID-19 a “super squirrelly virus that has broken every rule in the playbook. Get vaccinated, he says, and tell your friends and family to do the same”.
June 30, 2021 5:30 am ET
"SYDNEY—The exchange, captured by CCTV camera, lasted only seconds.
A limousine driver, unknowingly infected with the highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus, and another man passed close to one another at an indoor mall near Sydney’s Bondi Beach. Both stood near each other for a short time, and one of them appeared to move through the airspace the other had occupied. The brief interaction was enough for the second man to contract the coronavirus.
For Australian health officials, who described the CCTV footage and the method of transmission, it was a warning sign that the tactics that helped to crush all previous outbreaks may not work this time."
In other words, yes, if you are vaccinated, this opening up is pretty much ok. And since there are a lot of people who aren't vaccinated, this will once again spike the numbers and put a strain on the healthcare system. Once again, major city centers will have to bail out rural areas by taking overflow patients because there aren't enough COVID beds in small towns and villages.
You think your choice is to vaccinate or not vaccinate, so you consider the vaccine safety data against 0% risk. In fact, your choice is between a vaccine at the associated risks, and the Delta variant of COVID, and the associated risks. And the latter has such bad 'safety' outcomes that it would NEVER be approved as a mass deployed vaccine, yet people who think that 'natural' means 'good' will tacitly choose that over something that we designed specifically to keep us safe.
June 30, 2021 5:30 am ET
"SYDNEY—The exchange, captured by CCTV camera, lasted only seconds.
A limousine driver, unknowingly infected with the highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus, and another man passed close to one another at an indoor mall near Sydney’s Bondi Beach. Both stood near each other for a short time, and one of them appeared to move through the airspace the other had occupied. The brief interaction was enough for the second man to contract the coronavirus.
For Australian health officials, who described the CCTV footage and the method of transmission, it was a warning sign that the tactics that helped to crush all previous outbreaks may not work this time."
In other words, yes, if you are vaccinated, this opening up is pretty much ok. And since there are a lot of people who aren't vaccinated, this will once again spike the numbers and put a strain on the healthcare system. Once again, major city centers will have to bail out rural areas by taking overflow patients because there aren't enough COVID beds in small towns and villages.
You think your choice is to vaccinate or not vaccinate, so you consider the vaccine safety data against 0% risk. In fact, your choice is between a vaccine at the associated risks, and the Delta variant of COVID, and the associated risks. And the latter has such bad 'safety' outcomes that it would NEVER be approved as a mass deployed vaccine, yet people who think that 'natural' means 'good' will tacitly choose that over something that we designed specifically to keep us safe.
Australia has the lowest vaccination rate of any developed country and they might get in trouble soon.
Local health officers throughout Washington state have issued a joint statement recommending all residents wear facial coverings in indoor public settings where the vaccination status of other people is unknown.
The health officers from all local health jurisdictions in Washington on Thursday urged people to wear the masks, regardless of vaccination status.
Good thing I didn't throw out my masks. Still, it was nice to have a break, however brief.
Although it may not always make me the coolest person in my friend group, I'm masking whenever I'm indoors.
Long COVID is no joke. You can easily get it if you get a mild case or even if you're asymptomatic, and among the most common symptoms are chronic fatigue and brain fog. As a software developer who loves running and biking, I don't want to mess around with that.
Although I encourage all Americans to get vaccinated and I think the mask recommendation should be a mandate, I don't think we could have prevented this by being more cautious earlier --- Delta is a thing because India didn't have the resources to roll out the vaccines to their whole population. This isn't going away for Americans until the vaccine manufacturers are able to roll out updates much faster. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines were developed in 2 days, IIRC, and now that we've seen that the mRNA technology is safe, the FDA has no excuse for not approving updates as they come out.
Supposedly the vaccine companies take about six weeks to create a new version of an approved vaccine. This will be followed by a shorter clinical trial. After that it will still take some time to pump out enough copies. I would speculate then about 4-6 months total to get enough people vaccinated.
Good thing I didn't throw out my masks. Still, it was nice to have a break, however brief.
I am done with masks unless it's in a hospital or somewhere strongly required (such as airplane or school). Done with covid shots as well. Don't know how people still don't see what's happening. Covid is NEVER going away. But we have to get back to normal.
I am done with masks unless it's in a hospital or somewhere strongly required (such as airplane or school). Done with covid shots as well. Don't know how people still don't see what's happening. Covid is NEVER going away. But we have to get back to normal.
I agree on the need for normalcy. The medical authorities said early on that this wasn't going away; it's endemic. But people were (and still are) in denial. We're gradually adapting to it, and the technology will keep getting better.
I am done with masks unless it's in a hospital or somewhere strongly required (such as airplane or school). Done with covid shots as well. Don't know how people still don't see what's happening. Covid is NEVER going away. But we have to get back to normal.
wear mask get vaccine care about others sadly its all about me no sacrifiuce whatsoever by people/babies
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
