Should Fully Vaccinated Rhode Islanders Wear A Mask? Probably.

PROVIDENCE, RI — Across the country, COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths are soaring as the highly contagious, extremely dangerous delta variant rips through the population. Amid the surge, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued new guidance last week, encouraging even fully vaccinated people to wear a mask in public in certain situations.

Under the new guidance, mask-wearing is recommended in areas with "high" or substantial" COVID-19 spread, according to the CDC's transmission indicators.

The bad news? That includes most of Rhode Island.

According to the latest data from the CDC, four of the state's five counties have "substantial" spread. The exception, Newport County, had "moderate" transmission levels.

Dr. Meghan Ranney, an emergency room doctor and the director of the Brown-Lifespan Center for Digital Health, encouraged Rhode Islanders to mask up.

"Masks work. Full stop. They prevent me from spreading SARS-CoV-2 to you, and prevent you from spreading disease to me," Ranney said in a lengthy thread on Twitter. "Masks cause literally zero harm. Do they feel uncomfortable? Sure. But do they alter your physiology, cause infections, stunt growth, or do anything else bad? Nope."

Ranney reminded the public that CDC's announcement in May about mask-wearing for fully vaccinated people was based on the data at the time, when transmission was on the decline and the likelihood that fully vaccinated people would spread the virus was extremely low.

"But regardless of what you thought of those recommendations at the time — here is what can't be disputed," Ranney continued. "The biology has changed. Delta variant is bad. It spreads more easily and more quickly. "Not enough Americans have been vaccinated — fewer than 50 percent are fully vaccinated. Infection rates are surging — initially just in areas with low vaccination rates, but now across the country. Hospitals are once again getting overwhelmed."

Should I wear a mask?

Get vaccinated

Although there have been some breakthrough cases of COVID-19, vaccinations are still the best way to keep yourself and those around you safe from the delta variant, the Rhode Island Department of Health said.

"Unvaccinated people are most at risk of getting and spreading the Delta variant," reads the department's website. "Vaccination prevents severe illness, hospitalization, and death from the Delta variant. Some vaccinated people can get the Delta variant of COVID-19, but these cases are rare. The majority of hospitalizations and deaths continue to be among the unvaccinated."

The latest Rhode Island data shows that is the case. Last week, Gov. Dan McKee said that the "overwhelming majority" of new cases in the state are among unvaccinated people, along with and 18 of the 22 new COVID-19 hospitalizations over the previous week.

Read more:

• Mask Mandates 'Strongly Recommended' In RI Schools This Fall
• RI Leaders To Review New CDC Mask Guidance, No Change For Now
• Coronavirus Transmission 'Substantial' In RI As Cases Climb
• Lifespan, Care New England To Require Staff COVID-19 Vaccines