CDC Extends Mask Mandate for Air and Public Transportation

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that it would extend the federal transportation mask mandate for 15 more days.

People are required to wear masks in public transportation until early May.

CDC Extends Mask Mandate

The announcement was made on Apr. 13, and the mandate is now set to expire on May 3, according to the Associated Press.

The Biden administration official told CNN the goal of the extension was to get more information and understanding of the BA.2 variant of the coronavirus.

The official said that since early April, there have been increases in the average of cases in the United States.

In order to properly assess the potential impact the rise of cases has on the virus, including the hospitalizations, death, and health care system capacity, the CDC is recommending that the mask mandate be extended extend.

The public needs to wear masks on public transportation for 15 days until May 3.

Also Read: Google DROPS COVID-19 Vaccine Requirement for Employees | Face Mask Mandate Too?

The official also said that the extension would provide them more time to learn more about BA.2 and make the best-informed decision.

According to the latest estimates from the CDC, BA.2 caused at least 86% of new COVID-19 cases nationwide in early April.

COVID-19 Cases in the US

The United States is now averaging 38,345 COVID-19 cases every day, according to the data published by Johns Hopkins University.

The cases are trending up in more than half of the states, including Northeast, Delaware. But the daily rate is still one of the lowest once since July 2021, according to ABC News.

According to the CDC's latest ensemble forecast, there could be more than 11,000 deaths over the next four weeks, one of the lowest numbers of additional deaths predicted in 2022.

The number of new global COVID-19 cases and deaths also continued to decrease by 24% and 18%, respectively, during the week of Apr. 4 and Apr. 10 compared with the week before, the World Health Organization or WHO said in its weekly update.

But WHO and its International Health Regulations Emergency Committee or IHR said on Apr. 13 that the COVID-19 pandemic remains a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, which is a designation made in January 2020.

In several places within the United States, broad requirements that people wear masks in public places have been lifted. The transportation mandate applies to mass public transportation, including trains, buses, planes, and hubs like airports.

The mandate had been set to expire on Apr. 18. Dr. Ashish Jha, the White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator, told CNN on Apr. 11 that the CDC planned to share a scientific framework for the federal transportation mask mandate.

When asked about lifting the mask mandates on transportation, Dr. Jha said that the decisions should always be guided by science and evidence and a framework that helps them make better decisions.

The public can anticipate what the White House and the CDC come up with. For now, everyone is still required to wear mask in public, and the people are encouraged to get vaccinated in order to prevent any more extension of the mask mandate.

In 2021, Apple dropped its mask mandate for customers in more than 100 stores nationwide.

In February, Amazon dropped its mask mandate for employees at its warehouses.