NO MASK REQUIRED FOR FULLY VACCINATED PEOPLE IN KENTUCKY

Gov.Beshear following CDC Guidance

Frankfort Ky —

On the heels of new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Kentucky is changing its mask mandate.

On Thursday, the CDC eased mask wearing guidance for fully vaccinated people, allowing them to safely stop wearing masks inside in most places.

“Anyone who is fully vaccinated can participate in indoor and outdoor activities – large or small — without wearing a mask or physically distancing,” Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director of the CDC said.

“If you are fully vaccinated, you can start doing the things that you had stopped doing because of the pandemic," she said.

After the announcement was made, Gov. Andy Beshear released a video message saying Kentucky would change its mask mandate to be the same as what the CDC laid out — anyone who is fully vaccinated won't have to wear a mask indoors or outdoors in most situations. This goes into effect immediately.

The exceptions are in certain settings laid out by the CDC — such as on buses, planes, at hospitals, prisons and homeless shelters.

"That means you ought to go get your shot of hope if you haven't," Beshear said in his message. "If you get vaccinated, the CDC says it is safe to take that mask off."

Fully vaccinated means people are two weeks past their 2nd shot.

This still leaves some questions, including how this will all be enforced, but Beshear is expected to hold a news conference at 10:30 a.m. on Friday.

Beshear has promised to ease more restrictions as vaccine numbers go up, and said he'd look at a full easing once young teens were approved to get the shot -- which just happened this week.

Kentucky, Indiana and many other states, began vaccinating ages 12-15 on Thursday.

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