Recent information from L.A. states that, in their county population, the 2.3 or 3.3 million

[Atticus]

who were fully vaccinated, only 0.03%---that's three one hundredths of one percent---later got covid. And, that included those without any symptoms who were only tested for employment, etc.

Plus, in another article I did not save, I read about six groups or organizations--one was Mayo, another a large nursing home---that said that EACH of their statistics showed the chance of a fully vaccinated person transmitting the covid virus was less than one percent.

Serious question: why should those fully vaccinated wear masks?

[ananda]

1. Variants

We might need a booster before too long.

[Atticus]

3. And I will get any booster offered. But, at some point, don't we have to fully resume an unmasked

life?

Is that time now or near?

[brush]

5. Have patience. LA is not the rest of the country, and wearing masks when inside pubic places...

is not that big of a hassle. I say error on the side of caution until fall when Joe Biden says that 70% will be have been vaxxed with at least on shot.

We're getting there, but in some of those southern states only 10% are vaccinated and their governors are not exactly encouraging it.

[Atticus]

10. I am ok with masking in malls, etc. My main concern is when can I eat at the same inside

table unmasked with unvaccinated family members and when can I hug them?

It has now been over 14 months since i have done either of those.

[Ace Rothstein]

17. You can do that.

You don't need anyone to approve doing that for you.

[brush]

36. Isn't that what I said?

[Yavin4]

29. So, why aren't we putting more direct pressure on those who are not vaccinated?

Cutesy things like lottery tickets and dating apps diminish the message of the importance of getting vaccinated.

[beaglelover]

20. No more masks required as of 6/15 in L.A. Can't wait!!!

[LiberalFighter]

28. Too many are in a rush to get back to what we had before.

Better to be slow and methodical so we are safer.

Anyone. And I mean anyone that is in a rush are immature and should not be making life and death decisions.

[ananda]

39. Yes. Life is much better now.

I feel so much freer and more relaxed now.

I'm even going to start playing bridge ata the
club again next week. They require vax cards
to get in and will space the tables and put
disinfectant out for everybody to use.

[JI7]

2. Los Angeles gets a lot of visitors from around the world

[Lovie777]

4. Caution is the key word . ...

Take it slowly because nothing is a sure thing and I am 100% behind that logic. With assholes out there who still claim that COVID-19 is a hoax and that masks is the holocaust, slavery and vaccinations will take your manhood away, sterilizes, turns you into plants, chips are inserted and other wild conspiracies floating, yeah I'll keep wearing my mask until maybe June 15, 2021 when California lifts it.

[Pobeka]

6. New variant infections, and most importantly social behaviour.

There are cases of fatalities of some people who where vaccinated and subsequently infected with COVID (see NYT articles about nursing homes). Exceedingly rare, but it causes an open question in my mind:
Did these fatalities occur because the individuals get infected with a new variant the vaccine wasn't designed for?
or did these fatalities occur because the individuals just did not develop good antibody protection from the vaccine?

The US is not doing any substantial testing of vaccinated people to determine if a subsequent infection is due to a new variant.

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/rick-bright-wants-to-wipe-out-this-virus-but-its-going-to-take-better-covid-19-vaccines-distributed-to-70-of-the-worlds-population-11621345335?siteid=yhoof2
---

Since wearing a mask (apart from eating), generally places *no* limits on what you can do indoors, there are two benefits:
1. Makes it even less likely (in the rare case) you could get infected by a new variant that will cause long haulers symptoms or death
2. Reminds others the virius is still with us, and will put some social peer pressure on the unvaccinated to get vacinated.

If we can get to 70% adults fully vaccinated, I'll change my mind about wearing a mask indoors.

Outdoors, I have stopped mask wearing altogether for walking/hiking etc.,

[mucifer]

7. 1.07% of the people who have died from Covid in IL since Jan 1 were fully vaxxed

Breakthrough is defined as an individual who tests positive for COVID-19 at least 14 days after being fully vaccinated and did not test positive in the previous 45 days.

Following CDC, IDPH is reporting only patients with COVID-19 vaccine breakthrough infection that were hospitalized or died to help maximize the quality of the data collected on cases of greatest clinical and public health importance.

https://www.dph.illinois.gov/covid19/vaccinedata?county=Illinois

From the link you have to scroll down to see this information. Illinois prides itself on good public health stats.

[multigraincracker]

8. I'm keeping mine on.

First time in my life I've seen girls smile at me. One ugly dude.

[Hekate]

32. You must have nice eyes

[multigraincracker]

35. 😘

[SoonerPride]

9. Fully vaccinated people don't need to wear masks

In most situations.

Outside? No.
Inside with ample space? No
Inside with other other fully vaccinated people? No

The only instance where you might need one is in a crowded large public enclosed space like a shopping center But even then your chances of catching covid and it becoming a threat to your health are minuscule.

By mid summer I expect to only use my mask rarely.

We will see what happens in the fall.

If there is a spike again then maybe.

But that seems doubtful.

[snowybirdie]

11. Very serious answer

Because we choose to. You have no idea what co-morbidies we may have. No one's business who wears a mask or not. So tired of people challenging anyone's choices on mask wearing.

[Atticus]

22. That was NOT a challenge. I wear a mask everywhere inside except home but I hope an end is

in sight.

[RegularJam]

12. It shouldn't be recommended for them to wear a mask.

I won’t be wearing mine approximately ten days after my second shot. But don’t get rid of your masks. We will need them again when a more lethal variant emerges that the vaccine has no impact on. So many in the world are very pro-variant.

[ripcord]

13. Surely after 14 month you can wait another 23 days

Governor Newsom is lifting the mask mandate in June 15th.

[Atticus]

23. My governor has already lifted the mask order, but I don't want to let him or anyone else

make my decision.

[DBoon]

14. Wear masks to encourage those who arent vaccinated to wear one

make it a social norm to be masked

To make it harder for the anti-vaxxers to forgo their masks and get away with it in public.

Because there are other airborne conditionsfor which masks are effective protection - influenza, allergies, etc..

[Ace Rothstein]

18. Wearing masks is never going to be a social norm and nor should it be.

[DBoon]

19. It should be when there is a deadly airborne pandemic

Otherwise, spreading disease is the defacto social norm

NOT wearing a mask during a pandemic signals you don't care if people die. No society can survive if this is the prevailing attitude.

[Hekate]

33. Why not? It is in Asian countries during cold/flu seasons. In the US we aren't so smart...

...as evidenced by the speed with which we gave up mask-wearing after the 1918 Influenza Pandemic, and then allowed those who scoffed at the efficacy of masks in the first place to write the paragraphs about their use.

Which we will probably do again in the next few years. I mean it: we really aren’t as smart as we think we are in this country.

[Ace Rothstein]

34. If you have the flu or a cold and need to go out, wear a mask.

However, I feel like a contingent of posters here want masks for everyone forever.

[Yavin4]

30. The social norm should be get vaccinated. Masks do not protect you.

Wearing masks gives people the false impression that they're protected when they're not. Not all masks are equal. Mask wearing is not uniformly enforced.

An unvaccinated person is at a high risk of getting covid whether they're masked or not.

[Bobstandard]

15. Answer: to keep from getting the flu

I haven’t had a cold or flu since wearing a mask, and I like it.

[chowder66]

27. I'll be wearing my mask because I have a compromised immune system and so do many many others.

Until there is more data on people such as myself and variants I will be doing this. Anyone who thinks I'm trying to find an excuse or make a statement or am too scared can think whatever they want about me.

[Hekate]

21. It's sure helping with the pollens. I had a comprehensive allergy test once: turns out 4 seasons...

...are hardly enough to contain all the plants I’m allergic to in a state where things bloom the year around. I even tested positive for tumbleweed — who knew that was a thing?

Ya never know, do ya?

Still, I’m mostly not wearing a mask outdoors unless the wind is blowing at me. I’m still hardly going anywhere but Costco and Trader Joes, and so far their staff and customers are still masking up.

[Iggo]

25. Good point. That bottle of generic Zyrtec on the counter has lasted twice as long as the last one.

[Iggo]

24. June 15th not soon enough for you?

I haven’t been sick in over fourteen months and I like it. Far as I’m concerned, this mask-wearing thing is here to stay! Buses. Trains. The office. Concerts. Malls. Anywhere I used to get sick, I’m wearing one. I don’t see why people are mad about that.

[Yavin4]

31. People who are vaccinated and don't want to wear a mask should be respected as well.

Why should we be forced to wear masks and social distance when the science and data say that we do not need to? I have no argument with people who want to continue wearing masks, but they should not have the right to put restrictions on me. Especially since some of them do not want to require people to get the vaccine.

I'm tired of people who advocate for government mandated masks, social distancing, and capacity limits, but when I say, okay, let's have measures requiring people to get vaccinated. I get nothing but Libertarian, individual rights and freedom arguments. Make that make sense.

[Iggo]

40. No part of what I said advocates for government mandated masks beyond June 15th.

[joetheman]

26. No allergies, no sinus infection, no colds, no sore throat since last January. That's my reason,

[uponit7771]

43. +1,

[tinrobot]

37. Because it's irresponsible. Only about half in LA county have been fully vaccinated.

We're currently at 3.9 million fully vaccinated out of a little over 8 million eligible.

If you drop masks for one half, the other half can fake it and drop their masks, too. If that happens, we get another surge. If there's another surge, we're all wearing masks for an additional 6-8 weeks and more people die.

We're almost there kids, but not quite. So, simmer down, stop complaining, and keep those masks on.

[AnyFunctioningAdult]

38. Depends what your local state looks like

But we are about at the point now where anyone not vaccinated has chosen not to be. My state has not required masks for awhile now. Most stores still have signs saying to wear them but I would say a good 20% of people here have stopped now. Exactly no one wears them outside here now.

Anyone who wishes to wear one should be able to too. But it is going to be a rarity fairly soon unless there is a serious outbreak of a vaccine resistant variant.

[dsc]

41. Since ending mask mandates coupled with no vaccine passports

means no masks even for unvaccinated. I think that should wait until we are much closer to everyone being vaccinated than we are right now. The main reason I think this is variants. I know the chance of one may well be low but we shouldn't make them more likely.

[uponit7771]

42. 5% is what the trial test say so I don't want to be one of the 5%