|
 "That's under consideration right now," Biden told a reporter who
asked whether the administration was weighing such a requirement.
Biden made the remark during a visit to the Office of the Director
of National Intelligence in McLean, Virginia, as his
administration's health experts advised Americans fully vaccinated
against COVID-19 to start wearing masks again in some circumstances
due to the virus' fast-spreading Delta variant.
The White House has told its staff to start wearing masks again, a
White House official said on Tuesday.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Monday that the
administration had not made a determination about whether it would
be legal for Biden to require federal employees to be vaccinated.
The U.S. federal government is the country's largest employer.
Biden plans to announce "next steps" on Thursday in the effort to
get more Americans to receive shots, the president said in a
separate statement released by the White House.
[to top of second column] |
"In the meantime, more vaccinations and mask wearing in the areas
most impacted by the Delta variant will enable us to avoid the kind
of lockdowns, shutdowns, school closures and disruptions we faced in
2020," he said.
"Unlike 2020, we have both the scientific knowledge and the tools to
prevent the spread of this disease. We are not going back to that."
The new health guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention applies to fully vaccinated Americans in indoor
public places only in regions where the coronavirus is quickly
spreading.
Biden said he "certainly will" follow the guidance when he travels
to such areas.
(Reporting by Nandita Bose, Trevor Hunnicutt and Mohammad Zargham in
WashingtonEditing by Bill Berkrot and Matthew Lewis)
[© 2021 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2021 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content |
