WASHINGTON — Residents in D.C. and Loudoun may be told to start masking up indoors again, regardless of vaccination status, following updated CDC guidance.
On Tuesday, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said even vaccinated people should return to wearing masks indoors in areas with substantial or high amounts of community transmission of COVID-19.
Substantial transmission means there's been 50-100 cases per 100,000 over a 7-day period and high transmission means an area has seen more than 100 cases per 100,000 over a 7-day period, Walensky explained.
Loudoun, Virginia and the District were both upgraded Wednesday to "substantial" classification.
Here's a list of DMV counties that fall under the CDC's recommended mask-wearing category:
D.C.
- The District
Virginia
- Frederick County
- Loudoun County
- Page County
- Rappahannock County
- Spotsylvania County (high transmission)
- Stafford County
- Warren County (high transmission)
West Virginia
- Berkley County
- Morgan County (high transmission)
The entire state of Maryland remains in the "moderate" range.
The CDC also recommended all school districts mandate that masks be worn by teachers and students inside school buildings and on buses. Several school districts locally have begun finalized plans for the start of the school year that require both vaccinated and non-vaccinated members of their communities to wear masks while at school and in the classroom.
The White House and government health officials are pushing for more people to get vaccinated, and believe that doing so will help stop the spread of variants in the country. According to the Associated Press, President Biden is expected to announce Thursday that millions of federal workers must show proof they’ve received a coronavirus vaccine or submit to regular testing and stringent social distancing, masking and travel restrictions.
In an exclusive, one-on-one interview the Verify team sat down with the nation's leading infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, to talk masks, booster shots and more.
Watch the full interview below: