Disability advocates call on CDC to reinstate indoor mask guidelines

Dozens of advocacy groups are calling for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to walk back major changes to its mask guidance, arguing that the new recommendations are harmful to people with disabilities, Disability Scoop reported March 7. In a letter to CDC Director Rochelle Walensky late last week, over 100 groups and advocates asked the federal agency to again urge Americans to mask indoors in order to protect the most vulnerable. Under the new recommendations, which are based on a revised set of metrics, the CDC says more than 90% of Americans live in areas with low or medium COVID‐19 risk and can go mask‐free in most circumstances. The advocacy groups are asking Walensky to urge everyone to wear the highest‐quality masks available in all indoor public settings, including schools. “Despite acknowledging that some disabled, chronically ill, immunocompromised, people of color, and older people require additional protections, the new guidance does not address the needs of disabled people and older adults — as well as children with and without disabilities under five who are still not eligible for vaccines,” wrote the National Council on Independent Living, the National Disability Rights Network and numerous other groups, including The Arc and the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law. “This new guidance will not work for these communities and places us and our friends and families in danger.” The CDC did not respond to a request for comment.