(Fighting New Coronary Pneumonia) US "loose" mandatory mask order causes controversy

　　China News Service, Washington, May 14 (Reporter Chen Mengtong) After the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggested on the 13th that people who completed the new crown vaccination activities should not wear masks, some state governments and large chain companies in the United States followed up on the 14th and announced the relaxation of mandatory masks. Order policy.

　　The mask order is regarded as one of the signs that the US epidemic is still continuing.

For the lifting of this compulsory policy, supporters regard it as a sign of the "dawn" of the epidemic, while opponents believe that this move is too hasty and will cause the risk of a rebound of the epidemic.

　　According to data from Johns Hopkins University in the United States, as of 21.00 on the 14th, the number of confirmed cases of the new crown in the United States exceeded 32.89 million, and the number of deaths exceeded 585,000.

According to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 150 million people in the United States have received at least one dose of the vaccine, accounting for 46.8% of the total population.

　　The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a report on the 14th that a large-scale study among medical workers showed that the effective rate of messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccine against the new coronavirus was 94%.

The director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Valensky, said that this data shows that the new crown vaccine has exerted its expected effect in reality, and it is "critical to adjust the recommendations for those who have completed the vaccine."

　　Virginia and Maryland, located in the U.S. metropolitan area, successively announced on the 14th that they would lift the mandatory mask order for those who have completed the new crown vaccination to participate in most activities.

On the same day, Wal-Mart and other large chain companies also followed up and announced that those who have completed the vaccination can shop in stores without wearing masks.

　　At present, the average number of newly confirmed cases in the United States in 7 days is about 35,000.

Some public health experts worry that it is too early to "loose" the mask order at this time. Masks and maintaining social distancing are still the two simplest and most effective tools to prevent the spread of the virus.

　　Johns Hopkins University epidemiologist Lisa Malagakis believes that the US Centers for Disease Control’s recommendation is to "transfer all the responsibility for epidemic prevention to individuals." "In most cases, there is no The way to know who has been vaccinated, the end result may be that almost no one wears a mask."

　　Due to the lack of a unified national vaccination certification policy, how to identify and confirm vaccinated and non-vaccinated people has become an operational problem for states in implementing mask orders.

At present, New York State has been exploring the relevant vaccination certification mechanism, and Florida has explicitly prohibited this practice.

The White House has repeatedly stated that it will not implement a unified "vaccine passport" policy.

　　The Washington Post pointed out that on the one hand, the relaxation of the mask order is a positive signal for the United States to return to normalcy from the epidemic, but it also creates a problem for distinguishing customers for service industries such as restaurants.

　　The U.S. "Capitol Hill" believes that the United States has just let go of allowing vaccinations for teenagers between 12 and 15 years old. Relaxing the mask order at this time will increase the risk of infection for those who have not been vaccinated, especially children under 12 years of age.

　　The New York Times analyzed that one of the important factors for the "sudden turn" of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on the issue of wearing masks is that the supply of vaccines is guaranteed.

To a certain extent, this policy is also to attract those who have not been vaccinated to get vaccinated as soon as possible.

　　According to media statistics, more than 20 states including California and New York are still implementing mandatory mask orders.

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