(CNSNews.com) – CNN “New Day” host John Berman asked White House senior advisor for COVID response Andy Slavitt on Monday why President Joe Biden and congressional leaders he met with them at the White House on Wednesday all wore masks despite all being fully vaccinated.
“Now you are the vaccine guy, not the mask guy, but part of getting people vaccinated is to tell them that their lives will be different, changed, better, if they get the vaccine. There's this Oval Office meeting yesterday with the president and the leaders of Congress. Everyone in this room has been vaccinated. So why were they all wearing masks, and what message does that send?” Berman asked.
“Well, look, I think people who have been vaccinated are starting to get a little bit impatient with what can I do? Can I go indoors? Can I take masks off, et cetera? And I think the CDC is getting there step by step. So right now you can do pretty much everything outdoors without a mask, everything indoors if you're around vaccinated people without a mask,” Slavitt said.
“So why were they all wearing masks?” Berman asked.
“I'm not sure the president is the average person. I personally think there's a lot of protections around the president. Why does he need lots of Secret Service agents?” Slavitt said.
“Why do they belt and suspender everything with the president? Because he's a very important person, and you shouldn't take your mark just by what you see in the Oval Office. I think most people if you are indoors around other people vaccinated, CDC says it's okay, and I think you should listen to the CDC on that,” he said.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “if you’re fully vaccinated, you can gather indoors with fully vaccinated people without wearing a mask or staying 6 feet apart.”