WHITE HOUSE ENDS MASK MANDATE FOR VACCINATED

The White House is ending a mask requirement for employees who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, a White House spokesman confirmed to The Hill.

NBC News first reported Monday that the White House would end its mask requirement for fully-vaccinated employees beginning Tuesday.

The decision came three days after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) significantly eased its recommendations for mask use. Under the new guidelines, over 70 percent of Americans are in an area of “low” or “medium” risk for COVID-19 transmission and do not need to wear masks. This includes Washington, D.C., where an indoor mask mandate expires on Tuesday.

Prior to the announcement, the Biden administration had been under pressure from governors and some in the public health community to release updated mask guidance, as coronavirus cases fell and the omicron wave subsided.

A number of governors, both Republican and Democratic, have moved to end mask mandates for businesses or other gathering spaces, like schools, in recent weeks as COVID-19 cases have declined.