Grundy Provides Interim Public Health Recommendations for Fully Vaccinated

The  Centers  for  Disease  Control  and  Prevention  (CDC)  has  updated  the  Interim  Public  Health Recommendations   for   Fully   Vaccinated   People   (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/fully- vaccinated-guidance.html).

Effective immediately, Grundy County Health Department will accept this change for the county of Grundy.

Per  CDC  and  IDPH,  fully  vaccinated  people  no  longer  need  to  wear  masks  or  physically  distance  in  any  non- healthcare setting, except when required by federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, rules and regulations, including business and workplace guidance.  Corporations or independent businesses may still require masking.

Guidance  for  healthcare  settings  remains  unchanged  at  this  time  and  can  be  found  at  Updated  Healthcare Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations in Response to COVID-19 Vaccination. In addition, employees and  residents  of  congregate  settings,  such  as  correctional  facilities  and  homeless  shelters,  should  continue  to mask. Similarly, schools should continue to follow the CDC’s school guidance until more people and children are vaccinated.

The CDC’s guiding principles for these updates are:

-Indoor and outdoor activities pose minimal risk to fully vaccinated people.

-Fully vaccinated people have a reduced risk of transmitting SARS-CoV-2 to unvaccinated people.

-Fully vaccinated people should still get tested if experiencing COVID-19 symptoms.

-Fully vaccinated people should not visit private or public settings if they have tested positive for COVID-19 in the prior 10 days or are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms.

The following recommendations for fully vaccinated persons are as follows, per CDC/IDPH:

-Resume activities without wearing masks or physically distancing, except where required by federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, rules and regulations, including local business and workplace guidance

-Resume domestic travel and refrain from testing before or after travel or self-quarantine after travel (For now, masking is still required on planes, buses, trains and other forms of public transportation.)

-Refrain  from  testing  before  leaving  the  United  States  for  international  travel  (unless  required  by  the destination) and refrain from self-quarantine after arriving back in the United States

-Refrain  from  testing  following  a  known  exposure,  if  asymptomatic,  with  some  exceptions  for  specific settings (e.g., employees or residents of homeless shelters and detention facilities)

-Refrain from quarantine following a known exposure if asymptomatic

– Refrain from routine screening testing if feasible

For now, fully vaccinated people should continue to:

-Get tested if experiencing COVID-19 symptoms

-Follow CDC and health department travel requirements and recommendations