CDC Guidelines: Checklist on What You Can Do After Getting the COVID-19 Vaccine

As vaccinations continue, the Centers for Disease Control recently released guidelines on what people can do after being fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

Fully vaccinated means it has been two weeks since you received your second dose of Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, or two weeks since you received the single dose vaccine from Johnson & Johnson.

Life may soon start to have some semblance of normalcy, but just because you are vaccinated doesn’t mean you can go wild, live like before the pandemic.

Here’s a quick guide to what you can – and still can’t do – after being vaccinated, according to the CDC:

Socialize

Can I see my friends and family after I am fully immunized?
Yes! Don’t throw a big party with everyone you know, but the CDC admits that socializing becomes much safer once vaccines are involved. The guidelines differ depending on whether the people you want to see are also vaccinated.

• With vaccinated people, you can congregate indoors without masks
• With unvaccinated people, you can congregate indoors without a mask with members of a single household – as long as none of your unvaccinated friends / family are at high risk. This means that you still want to avoid seeing unvaccinated elderly people or people with underlying illnesses that would make a potential COVID-19 infection particularly serious, just to be on the safe side.

What about large gatherings?
The CDC always advises against medium and large gatherings, even if you are fully vaccinated.

And the hugs?
This is where your personal comfort with the risk comes in, but the risk of transmitting COVID-19 with two fully vaccinated people is close to zero, so hugs should be pretty safe there. When one person is vaccinated and the other is at low risk, cuddling is also low risk with members of the same household.

Masking

Do I have to wear a mask if I am still vaccinated?
Being vaccinated does not exempt you from local and national ordinances on wearing masks or masks in public. While the CDC says you can socialize with indoor and unmasked household members, the agency still suggests wearing a mask when around lots of people, in public, or while shopping. .

You should continue to wear a mask or face shield, and practice a distance of 6 feet when:

• Socialize with people from more than one household indoors
• Visiting people at high risk of COVID-19 and not vaccinated
• In public

Trip

Can I travel now that I am fully immunized?
The CDC always suggests avoiding domestic and international travel that is not necessary. Many countries still prohibit US citizens from entering.

If you must travel, you must still respect the restrictions in force, such as wearing a mask on an airline or performing a PCR test before your arrival (depending on the destination).

Quarantine

Do I have to quarantine myself if I am exposed to COVID-19?
If you come into contact with someone who has COVID-19 and you are fully vaccinated, you no longer need to quarantine yourself if you have no symptoms.

If you start having symptoms, you should quarantine yourself and get tested, says the CDC.

See the full CDC guidelines here.