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Why it's unlikely there will be a nationwide mask mandate, even as COVID cases continue to climb

Health experts say it is unlikely there will be a nationwide mask mandate because the pushback would be extreme.

Increases in COVID cases and hospitalizations have some health experts calling for the return of face masks. So will the CDC change its message on masks? 

Let’s connect the dots.

Back in May, vaccination rates were high and case counts were down. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention declared that it was safe for fully vaccinated people to toss their masks — in most settings. 

We all know what happened next. Vaccine rates slowed down and the Delta variant hit hard. 

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Health experts say the CDC decision was backed up by science but unfortunately not human behavior. That led to unvaccinated and unmasked individuals fueling the spread of the contagious Delta variant.

Now, White House chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci says fully vaccinated people might want to consider putting the mask back on.

While the vaccines are effective they don’t offer 100 percent protection. 

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Dr. Fauci says if the vaccinated want added protection they can wear a mask indoors especially in crowded places.

Despite that new recommendation, experts say it is unlikely there will be a nationwide mask mandate because the pushback would be extreme.

Instead, with 99.5 percent of all U.S. COVID deaths now being unvaccinated people, the focus will be on more people getting the shot.

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