Will Mask Mandates Return? Fauci Doesn’t Expect More Federal Mandates As Covid Deaths Rise

Topline

Former White House chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said Sunday he’d be extremely surprised to see a return to federal mask mandates or an “overwhelming rush” of coronavirus cases, as deaths and hospitalizations rise nationwide while a new variant spreads.

Key Facts

Fauci told ABC’s This Week if there is “a significant uptick in cases” there could be recommendations that masks are used in indoor settings and certain circumstances, and local organizations could require masks, but he doesn’t expect federal mandates.

Throughout the pandemic, it was up to state and local leadership to implement mask mandates in most settings, but the federal government required masks for federal buildings and federally-owned land, and a federal mandate was enforced on airplanes, trains, buses, airports and transit hubs until a judge struck down the rule in April 2022.

The latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows hospitalizations from Covid-19 are up 15.7% in the past week, and deaths up 10.5%, though figures are still far lower than they were at any peak during the pandemic.

The “Eris” variant of Covid-19—part of the XBB lineage—is the dominant strain in the U.S. right now, and made up nearly 22% of all cases between August 20 and September 2.

Crucial Quote

“Given the level of immunity that we all have… people who have been vaccinated, boosted, people who have been infected like you and I, where we have hybrid immunity, the chances of this being an overwhelming rush of cases and hospitalizations is probably low,” Fauci said on ABC’s This Week.

Tangent

The Food and Drug Administration is expected to approve new boosters for Covid-19 any day now. The agency recently encouraged Moderna, Pfizer and Novavax to create new monovalent vaccines that target the XBB lineage, which is believed to be causing the current spike. In addition, a CDC advisory committee is scheduled to meet this week and has a vote to recommend Covid-19 vaccines on the agenda.

Key Background

Covid-related deaths and hospitalizations have been steadily increasing since the start of the summer and are expected to keep rising through the fall. Because states aren’t required to report Covid figures to the CDC any longer, experts have turned to tracking Covid increases through things like wastewater and hospitalizations, NBC News reported, both of which are confirming the latest increase. The currently offered bivalent vaccine booster shots—which were released last year to offer immunity against the omicron variant—provide around 50% protection against XBB variants in most adults and 33% protection in those 65 years and older, according to a January study conducted by the CDC. But vaccine makers are confident their new vaccines can provide even stronger protection. Moderna said late last month that its new booster may be effective at protecting against the Eris variant and Pfizer reported around the same time that its new shot protected against the variant when tested on mice. There is also a new variant, BA.2.86, or “Pirola,” circulating—that isn’t part of the XBB lineage—and that the World Health Organization has labeled as under monitoring.