[ad_1]
Former US surgeon general Jerome Adams has said advice on coronavirus masks may be “premature” or “wrong” in the face of potentially dangerous new variants.
Adams served as a surgeon general under former President Donald Trump, playing a leading role throughout the first phase of the pandemic. He recently took to Twitter to express his own regrets and concerns about the mask warrants since then.
“Last year Tony Fauci and I notoriously, prematurely and wrongly advised against masks,” Adams wrote in a rare admission of a misstep. “I thought it was the best call back then, but now I regret it.”
“I am concerned that the CDC has also made an equally premature, misinterpreted, but still damaging call for masking in the face of [rising] delta variant. ”
He urged the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to advise people instead to get vaccinated and wear masks in areas where COVID-19 cases are highest until the numbers start to drop.
WHITE HOUSE DOUBLE ON ITS SUSTAINABLE FACEBOOK CRITICS FOLLOWING BIDEN’S ‘KILLS’ REMARKS
The CDC updated its guidelines in May to say that fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear masks indoors or outdoors, or to distance themselves socially. CDC director Dr Rochelle Walensky hailed the advice at the time as a major step towards normalcy.
However, the delta variant has gained increased attention in recent weeks as it has become the main strain of COVID-19 in a number of countries. Walensky said in late June that nearly one in two samples sent for genomic sequencing now comes back positive for the delta variant.
US INVESTS MILLIONS TO BREED MORE TEST MONKEYS FOLLOWING COVID-19: REPORT
The CDC said on July 6 that the delta variant is likely the dominant strain in the United States
Fauci reiterated the CDC’s guidance on July 1, insisting that the agency’s “broad recommendation” was based on the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines.
NFL TEAMS TO FIND WAYS TO IDENTIFY VACCINATED MEMBERS, PANTHERS AMONG THOSE WITH THE HIGHEST IMPT RATES
“As I mentioned in my comments, you have a broad recommendation for the country as a whole, which is the CDC’s recommendation that if you are vaccinated you have a high degree of protection, so you do not have need to wear a mask whether indoors or outdoors, ”Fauci said during the White House COVID-19 response team briefing.
Despite the threat of the delta variant, vaccinations are lagging behind in some areas, particularly in the Midwest.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
The White House has announced that it will send “emergency response” teams to areas with a peak in delta cases, with the first arriving in Springfield, Missouri. The two-person team is said to have pledged to stay in the area until August 6.
Alexandra Hein of Fox News contributed to this report.
[ad_2]
Source link