Vermont will no longer require people to wear a mask in distanced outdoor settings, whether they’re vaccinated or not, officials said at a press conference Friday.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently published guidance that allows fully vaccinated people to skip masks outdoors. But Gov. Phil Scott said the science shows that outdoor transmission is rare and poses little risk.
“If you’re walking down the street, you don’t need to wear a mask,” he said. “If you’re at the dog park and you’re not in a crowd, you don’t need a mask. If you’re with people outdoors in accordance with the gathering policy, you don’t need a mask.”
Health Commissioner Mark Levine said Vermonters needed to keep up two of three different restrictions: Wearing a mask, staying outdoors, and maintaining social distancing. So if they’re outdoors and not in a crowded space, they don’t need to wear masks.
“So if you’re outside on a run, or the family is on a hike or up for biking, or your kids have an outdoor play date, or you’re on the sidelines watching a baseball game … you are not required to wear a mask,” Levine said.
He added, “if any of your activities turn into a crowded situation, have your mask with you in case you need it.”
The guidance shift comes a day before the state moves to the next stage of its reopening plan. Vermont has met its target for the percent of the population that needs to be vaccinated for the May 1 reopening, Scott said.
“With over 60% of Vermont adults vaccinated, we’re getting closer and closer to normal again. Why? Because vaccines work,” he said.
Public Safety Commissioner Michael Schirling said most businesses would move to “universal guidance”: Manufacturing and construction, restaurants and bars, religious facilities, gyms, sports, salons, and arts and culture buildings, for example.
Universal guidance means that rather than each industry having its own guidance and restrictions, every business will follow the same rules on masking, distancing, traveling and staying home when sick, he said.
Health care, education and child care will continue to have their own rules to follow, Schirling said.
The latest step also raises gathering limits, depending on whether the event is indoors or outdoors and setting limits for unvaccinated people, with no limit to the number of vaccinated people that can attend.
Young adult vaccinations lagging
More than 61% of Vermonters 16 and over have received at least one dose of the vaccine, and 43% are fully vaccinated, the DOH reported Friday.
But Vermont is struggling to get 18- to 29-year-olds signed up and vaccinated, Human Services Secretary Mike Smith said.
About 44% of people in that age group are either vaccinated or signed up to receive the vaccine, the lowest of any age group, according to human services agency data. That’s compared to 53% of 16- and 17-year-olds and 65% of people 30 to 39.
Scott said young people should take responsibility for getting the vaccine. He likened it to his father’s generation participating in the World War II effort. “They stepped up, signed up, knowing that they would be gone for quite some time [and] didn’t know when they would get back,” he said.
“They stepped up and took massive tremendous sacrifice, stepping up to do the right thing, over a multitude of years,” he said. “Here, we’re asking this 18- to 29-year old grouping to have one shot, do one thing. Step up to help everyone else. And I don’t think it’s too much to ask.”
But Vermont also hopes to expand access to the vaccine through more convenient scheduling and locations. The state has a handful of walk-in and drive-in clinics planned, and has scheduled on-campus clinics for at least five different colleges, Smith said.
Looking ahead, Vermont is working on partnerships to hold clinics at racetracks, and potentially restaurants, workplaces and Burlington’s Church Street and Lake Champlain waterfront, Smith said.
“We recognize there is not a one-size-fits-all approach to vaccination, and we will keep exploring ways to meet Vermonters where they are,” Levine said. “When this effort is over, the last thing we want to find out is that someone could not get vaccinated due to issues like scheduling or time of day or convenience or drive time or location.”
Levine encouraged Vermonters to have discussions with their vaccine-reluctant family members, listening with empathy and without judgment.
“Try asking them open-ended questions, and then ask permission to share information from trusted sources about their specific concerns,” he said. “Believe it or not, that can go a long way towards increasing a person’s confidence.”
He also asked Vermonters to help their peers and loved ones to get to a vaccine appointment.
“Anything you can do to make it easier for someone else to get vaccinated, whether it’s offering a ride, offering to watch their kids, helping them to make the appointment or keeping an eye out for a walk-in clinic that is suited for them, you truly can be a trusted messenger,” he said. “Helping a friend or family member get vaccinated not only helps you, but helps the entire state.”
