Just over two months after saying that vaccinated people could go mask-free in most situations, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced today that, in light of a dramatic rise in COVID-19 cases tied to the Delta variant, even those who've had their shots should mask up in places with significant viral spread. The agency now recommends everyone mask up while indoors in communities with "substantial" or "high" transmission, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said during a briefing today. In the CDC map below, counties with substantial transmission (50-100 cases per 100,000 residents) are shown in orange, and those with high transmission (over 100 cases per 100,000) are shown in red (yellow is "moderate," and blue is "low.")
The CDC also said all K-12 students, staff and visitors should wear masks indoors this coming school year, regardless of their vaccination status.
As my colleague Brian Bennett reports, President Joe Biden's administration has been left with few options to address the latest increase in cases (the U.S. is now reporting a seven-day average of about 57,000 daily new cases, compared to about 12,000 a month ago). As cases surged in recent days, experts called on the CDC to revise its masking guidance accordingly, while leaders in some communities—including Los Angeles, Savannah and St. Louis —tightened up their masking rules even before today's CDC announcement.
Speaking to reporters today, Walensky explained that the more transmissible Delta variant has changed the dynamics of the pandemic. Back in May, the CDC justified its decision to loosen its masking rules in part by pointing to evidence that vaccinated people typically weren't getting infected, and were even less likely to infect others. But Walensky said today that the Delta variant makes it more likely for vaccinated people to spread the virus (although it's still overwhelmingly transmitted by the unvaccinated). She also noted that tougher masking rules can help protect groups that can't get vaccinated, like children under 12 and the immunocompromised. Curbing viral spread could also help prevent the rise of new variants that could even more successfully evade the existing vaccines, she added.
In some parts of the country that have enacted masking rules, opponents have already issued challenges. Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, for instance, filed suit yesterday in an effort to block St. Louis' new requirement. "I will continue to fight this seemingly unending control and intrusion on peoples lives—we will not back down," Schmitt said in a statement.
For her part, Walensky acknowledged that pandemic restrictions, including masking requirements, have taken a toll on many Americans' mental health, but she added that the new guidance is necessary to protect people's health and lives. "This weighs heavily on me," she said.
About 395.4 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been shipped to various U.S. states as of yesterday afternoon, of which some 342.6 million doses had been administered thus far, according to TIME's vaccine tracker. About 49.2% of Americans had been completely vaccinated.
More than 194.7 million people around the world had been diagnosed with COVID-19 as of 1 a.m. E.T. today, and nearly 4.2 million people have died. On July 26, there were 551,923 new cases and 8,481 new deaths confirmed globally.
Here's how the world as a whole is currently trending:
Here's where daily cases have risen or fallen over the last 14 days, shown in confirmed cases per 100,000 residents:
And here's every country that has reported over 3 million cases:
The U.S. had recorded more than 34.5 million coronavirus cases as of 1 a.m. E.T. today. Nearly 611,000 people have died. On July 26, there were 89,418 new cases and 61 new deaths confirmed in the U.S.
Here's how the country as a whole is currently trending:
Here's where daily cases have risen or fallen over the last 14 days, shown in confirmed cases per 100,000 residents:
All numbers unless otherwise specified are from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering, and are accurate as of July 27, 1 a.m. E.T. To see larger, interactive versions of these maps and charts, click here.
WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD KNOW
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs willbecome the first federal agency to issue a vaccine mandate, it announced yesterday. As the New York Timesreports, 115,000 of the VA's frontline health care workers will need to get their shots within the next eight weeks or potentially lose their jobs. "We're mandating vaccines ... because it's the best way to keep veterans safe, especially as the Delta variant spreads across the country," VA Secretary Denis McDonough said in a statement. Four of the department's employees have died of the virus in recent weeks.
In what UNICEF described in a statement earlier today as "arguably the fastest vaccination campaign to be executed during a pandemic," Bhutan, a south-central Asian nation of about 763,000 people, has fully vaccinated 90% of its eligible population. The country's health care workers administered shots at community centers and through at-home visits; they even trekked to high altitudes to vaccinate nomadic herders in the country's mountains. Bhutan has received hundreds of thousands of vaccine doses from abroad, including 500,000 sent via the COVAX program.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released new guidelines yesterday making explicit that certain patients with "long COVID" can receive disability benefits. About 23% of people who contract COVID-19 experience lingering symptoms, including shortness of breath, headaches and brain fog, according to a June report by FAIR Health. At an event yesterday marking the anniversary of the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act, U.S. President Joe Biden said that his administration is working to ensure that Long COVID patients can receive disability benefits. However, as my colleague Abby Abrams reports, without reform, the backlogged disability benefits system may struggle to serve a potentially large influx of new patients.
Trying to visit the U.S. soon? You may be out of luck: The Biden Administration is keeping its travel restrictions barring most visitors in place, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said at a press briefing yesterday, citing the global spread of the Delta variant. Psaki did not say when the ban might be lifted. "It's all about what success we have at getting more people vaccinated, getting more vaccines out to the world, and fighting the virus," she said.
Tokyo, Japan—which is hosting the 2020 Olympic Games—reported a record 2,848 new cases today, a new high-water mark that comes just days after the competitions got underway. City leaders have asked hospitals to prepare more beds for incoming COVID-19 patients and to consider delaying planned surgeries, NPR reports, citing Japanese media. Only about one in four Japanese residents are vaccinated, leaving the country vulnerable to outbreaks.
Thanks for reading. We hope you find the Coronavirus Brief newsletter to be a helpful tool to navigate this very complex situation, and welcome feedback at coronavirus.brief@time.com. If you have specific questions you'd like us to answer, please send them to covidquestions@time.com.
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Today's newsletter was written by Tara Law and edited by Alex Fitzpatrick.
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