Former Surgeon General Says CDC ‘Premature’ to Relax Mask Rules as Delta Variant Spreads

Former US surgeon general Jerome Adams, who served under Donald Trump, fears the easing of mask guidelines may be “premature” in the face of the increase in infections caused by the delta variant.

Adams regretted that he and Dr Anthony Fauci, the country’s leading infectious disease expert, did not more strongly advocate for masks at the start of the pandemic last year. Now he fears the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention is repeating the same mistake after rescinding its guidelines for wearing indoor masks.

“What @CDCgov said was based on science and conditions at the time, and amounted to ‘you’re safe IF you vax it OR hide it,’” Adams tweeted on Saturday. “The conditions (increasing cases) and the science (delta variant) have changed, but what people heard and held is that the masks were no longer needed …”

What Dr Fauci and I said was based on the science and conditions of the time and amounted to “saving the medical masks (which were all that were available) for the medical staff”.

Conditions and science have changed, but what people have heard and remembered is that masks don’t work …

– Jérôme Adams (@JeromeAdamsMD) July 17, 2021

The CDC said in May, after about a third of Americans were fully immunized, that those who received the necessary vaccines “no longer need to wear masks or physical distancing.”

Adams made several comments early last year, on his personal social media and in television appearances, advising against wearing masks. He even tweeted a call last year for people to stop buying masks for fear that medical professionals might not be able to get proper personal protective equipment.

Adams said on Saturday he regretted his old post and that the CDC’s decision to relax masking rules was also “misinterpreted, premature and wrong.”

“Now you have health officials, cities and counties (eg LA County) and probably soon states that will be issuing guidelines in direct conflict with the @CDCgov mask guidelines posted a month ago. . The sooner the CDC says we messed up and hit the reset button, the better, ”Adams said. “Believe me, I know more than anyone.”

Los Angeles County public health officials reinstated a warrant for wearing an indoor mask last week, calling it a “bare-handed moment” amid a wave of infections following the rise of the delta variant.

The warrant has already caused some confusion, as Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva told residents his office will not enforce the warrant because it contradicts CDC guidelines and is “not supported by the science”.

Although groundbreaking infections can occur in people vaccinated, vaccinations have been shown to be effective against severe cases of Covid-19 and hospitalizations due to the virus.

The CDC said earlier this month that the delta variant, which is highly transmissible, is now the dominant strain of coronavirus across the country. There is growing concern about unvaccinated young people who are hospitalized at alarming rates.

President Joe Biden stepped up messages about vaccines for young Americans, inviting “Driver’s License” singer Olivia Rodrigo to the White House on Wednesday to discuss the importance of getting the vaccine.

Fauci described the delta variant as the greatest threat to coronavirus elimination in June, after being declared a “variant of concern” by the World Health Organization in May.