Philadelphia officials 'strongly' recommend wearing masks in indoor spaces, regardless of vaccination status

NEW DELHI: Philadelphia health officials on Thursday strongly recommended everyone to wear masks in indoor spaces, regardless of vaccination status.
"It's time for all of us to do what we need to do to protect our city's kids. That means getting fully vaccinated if you haven't yet, and it means all of us going back to wearing masks in public," said acting health commissioner Cheryl Bettigole in a statement. "Kids under 12 cannot yet be vaccinated. They need you to step up."
Bettigole added that the city is witnessing "a small but disturbing increase in hospitalizations due to Covid-19 among children."
Health officials asked the public to avoid crowded indoor spaces, and choose outdoor spaces over indoor ones. They further recommended "wearing a mask while indoors around people whom you don't know are vaccinated, and for unvaccinated people, consider double masking while in indoor public spaces."
At present, 60.8 per cent of adults in Philadelphia are fully vaccinated, and 73.9 per cent have received at least one dose of a Covid vaccine, according to officials.
"As of this week, over one million people have been vaccinated in Philadelphia," said mayor Jim Kenney. "The numbers make it clear: vaccinations are the best way to combat Covid-19 by protecting ourselves and the people around us."