Marsha Blackburn to CDC: 'Masks Have Not and Will Not Make COVID Go Away'

Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) issued a reminder to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Tuesday, noting that masking is not key to making the Chinese coronavirus disappear — a reminder that comes as certain states and localities reinstitute mask mandates nearly two years after the start of the pandemic.

“Dear @CDCDirector, Masks have not and will not make COVID go away,” the Tennessee Republican said on Tuesday:

Public health officials have continued urge everyone regardless of vaccination status to wear masks to stop the spread of the virus, despite the fact that vaccines were originally pitched as a way to return to a state of maskless, pre-pandemic normalcy. 

“We’re asking everyone to follow these four steps: Get vaccinated and get boosted if you are eligible, wear a mask, stay home when you’re sick, and take a test if you have symptoms or are looking for greater, extra reassurance before you gather with others,” CDC director Rochelle Walensky pleaded during last week’s White House COVID-19 Response Team’s press conference. 

Dr. Anthony Fauci repeated that sentiment, telling Americans that they cannot become “complacent” just because of omicron’s decreased severity.

“So, don’t take this as a signal that we can pull back from the recommendations that you just heard from Dr. Walensky about the need for vaccination, for boostering, for wearing masks, and all the other CDC recommendations,” he said. 

Current CDC guidance instructs every unvaccinated individual two or older to wear a mask in indoor public places, but it also urges vaccinated individuals to “consider wearing a mask in crowded outdoor settings and for activities with close contact with others who are not fully vaccinated” if they are in areas with high coronavirus numbers.

 “If you are fully vaccinated, to maximize protection and prevent possibly spreading COVID-19 to others, wear a mask indoors in public if you are in an area of substantial or high transmission,” the CDC adds.

The pleas come despite blue, mandate-heavy areas seeing some of the highest coronavirus figures in the nation, regardless of mask mandates. 

Notably, President Biden originally pitched just 100 days of masking, which he said would “make a difference.”

“It’s not a political statement; it’s a patriotic act,” he said at the time. 

Yet, America is well beyond the 100 day period of Biden’s masking plan, and there is still no end in sight. All the while, despite the masking rules — including on planes — the U.S. is slated to surpass record coronavirus hospitalizations this week.

 “220,000 Americans dead. If you hear nothing else I say tonight, hear this,” Biden said during a presidential debate with former President Trump in October 2021.

“Anyone who’s responsible for not taking control — in fact, not saying, I take no responsibility, initially — anyone who is responsible for that many deaths should not remain as President of the United States of America,” he added. 

It does not appear that Biden believes he, himself, should step down from his post, despite the fact that the figure now surpasses 800,000.