Pennsylvania Amends Face Covering Requirements

Pennsylvania’s Acting Secretary of Health Alison Beam amended the existing Universal Face CoveringsOpens In A New Window order, which was issued on November 17, 2020, to align with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Recommendations for Fully Vaccinated PeopleOpens In A New Window. The amended order went into effect at 12:01 a.m. on March 17, 2021, and will remain in effect until further notice.

“The vaccines that are currently available across the state and country are highly effective at protecting vaccinated people against severe and symptomatic COVID-19,” Acting Secretary Beam said. “Research has shown that fully vaccinated people are less likely to have asymptomatic infection and potentially less likely to spread the virus that causes COVID-19 to others. However, there is still more to learn about how long protection lasts and how much vaccines protect against new variants of the virus, so some prevention measures will continue to be in place for all people, regardless of their vaccination status.”

According to the CDC, there are several activities that fully vaccinated people can resume now, at low risk to themselves, but understand the potential risk of transmitting the virus to others still exists. Those activities include:

• Visiting with other fully vaccinated people indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing;
• Visiting with unvaccinated people from a single household who are at low risk for severe COVID-19 disease indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing; and
• Refraining from quarantine and testing following a known exposure, if asymptomatic.

However, it is important that fully vaccinated people continue to take precautions in public like wearing a mask and practicing physical distancing; avoid medium- and large-sized in-person gatherings; get tested if they experience COVID-19 symptoms; follow guidance issued by employers, and follow travel requirements and recommendations.

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Individuals who are fully vaccinated should also continue to wear a mask, practice physical distancing and follow other prevention measures when visiting unvaccinated people who are at increased risk for severe COVID-19 disease or who have an unvaccinated household member who is at increased risk for severe COVID-19 disease and when visiting unvaccinated people from multiple households.

People are considered fully vaccinated for COVID-19 more than two weeks after they have received the second dose in a two-dose series or more than two weeks after they have received a single-dose vaccine. It is important to remember that physical distancing and capacity requirements for gatherings must still be followed.

While vaccine supply from the federal government is limited, the Department of Health is working to ensure the vaccine is provided in a way that is ethical, equitable, and efficient. These links keep Pennsylvanians informed about vaccination efforts:

• The Your TurnOpens In A New Window tool provides a way to register to be alerted when it’s your turn to be vaccinated.
• A commonwealth COVID-19 vaccination guideOpens In A New Window explains the current process for getting one. Pennsylvanians with questions about the vaccination process can call the Department of Health hotline at 1-877-724-3258.
• Vaccine provider mapOpens In A New Window to find a COVID-19 vaccine provider near you.
• All of the locations that received vaccine and how much they have received can be found on the COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution webpageOpens In A New Window.
• Vaccine dashboard dataOpens In A New Window can also be found on the website to find more information on the doses administered and showcase demographic information.
• Pennsylvanians can provide feedback on the Pennsylvania COVID-19 Interim Vaccination PlanOpens In A New Window by clicking on the Plan Feedback Form square under Popular Vaccine Topics hereOpens In A New Window.
• Frequently asked questions can be found hereOpens In A New Window.

Starting today, more Philadelphians will be eligible to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

On Friday, Philadelphia Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Farley announced that the following groups are now eligible to be vaccinated as part of Philadelphia Phase 1b:

People living with intellectual disabilities

-Staff at senior centers or day programs for seniors and those with intellectual disabilities

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-People who use oral corticosteroids, or other immune weakening medications

-Clergy

Officials also opened the sixth community-based mass vaccination clinic on Monday.

African Americans number 1,270,826 or 21% of the population.