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CDC Relaxes Mask Guidance For Outdoor Activities

CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky says vaccinations are key to getting back to normal safely.
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We're one step closer to so-called "normalcy" after the CDC released new face mask guidance Tuesday.

Whether you're vaccinated or not, the agency says you no longer need to wear a mask for outdoor activities like walking, running or biking, since the risk of transmission is so low outside. 

The agency also says it's safe for fully vaccinated people to dine outdoors without a mask. 

Although the CDC is still recommending everyone, vaccinated or not, to continue to wear masks at crowded outdoor events, like concerts or sporting events.

It's also recommending that everyone still wear masks at indoor public places like salons, restaurants, shopping centers, gyms, museums and movie theaters.

CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky says, "With regard to why people who are vaccinated are wearing masks indoors, I think what we really need to convey here is we still have 50,000 cases a day. And right now, it's very hard to, to tease apart who is vaccinated, where they are in the vaccination. So it's not just to protect themselves, but largely to protect others and really to protect the unvaccinated."

Additional reporting by The Associated Press.