The mask request stays. It exists for the safety of our membership as it is in the ethos of MakeICT to ‘make safely’. I follow the numbers closely and the CDC guidance is always at the forefront of my actions. We will relax when the tide has turned.
I realize that many of you are vaccinated and that some of you feel it should exempt you. The problem is I and other members have no way of knowing this. I do not wish to police your vaccination status as I’m walking the halls and so relaxing the requirement presents the very possible situation in which an unvaccinated COVID positive member is walking the halls mask free increasing the potential for the disease to spread. The practical solution is to assume for the time being that everyone is positive and take appropriate measures. The most essential, and frankly effortless, of these being to remain masked in the space.
Rural counties in Kansas have seen fewer deaths from COVID than urban communities because they have less people. Rural death rates per capita, however, are much higher. I’m happy to share the math with you if you’re interested.
I want you all to know that I appreciate everyone’s input on this matter. I am sensitive to the frustration of having been vaccinated, having followed the directives towards a return to normalcy, but not feeling that it’s made a substantial difference in your comfort. I want you to know that we’re going to discuss this at our upcoming board meeting. It is time for us to have a discussion towards what metrics we will follow in loosening our mask request
Following the speed limit, while sometimes mildly inconvenient, significantly reduces our risk of harming others. Yes, I still drive, but I do so safely.
Wearing a mask is not analogous to giving up driving.
So random data point.
Now that work has unmasked, a few people have begun passing around a cold.
I’ve remarked at work for now, but MIT does have evidence that the Rhinovirus kills Coronavirus.
Thought it was interesting, no one has had a cold in a year it seems…
I notice that the Covid Contacts section of the forum, created Dec '20, has no posts. I suppose that could be taken into consideration and help inform the decision-making process on the mask policy as we look for metrics on change.
Nice thought but no.
We have been super lucky in not spreading at the makerspace. That part of the forum was a good idea until we went to use it and decided that discretion is the better part of valor. I believe the current process is to contact every one who entered during that time frame and let them know they were exposed.
I can say that I was exposed here once or twice and never contracted it, which tells me that our preventive measures were working.
I did say inform, not drive, the decision. If there have been incidents which required contacting people, should they not be logged into that section of the forum? Of course, I would expect that the forum report wouldn’t need to have identifying information would, at a minimum, have date and time information so people can decide if they need to self test. Perhaps knowing there there have, in fact, been causes for concern MIGHT lessen the push-back on a mask mandate.
I see in the news today that the CDC has lifted the recommendation to mask up or maintain social distancing (indoors and outdoors) if a person has been fully vaccinated. Our state and local guidance is masks are optional and most businesses are treating masks as optional. I work at Textron and they changed to optional starting this week. With all of this my request to the board is that we change the policy to masks being optional for everyone.
The CDC placed the conditional of IF you are fully vaccinated. With this new information I agree the board should re-evaluate but I still feel that cautious trumps cavalier and still believe masks are the best bet to keep everyone safe. Maybe mask required unless you prove your fully vaccinated and get a sticker on your badge, sort of like the exotic woods sticker but instead a ‘So sick of COVID I got shots’ sticker?
TL:DR Still for masks.
There may be grant funding to get such a sticker, I’ll know next week.
Getting a sticker on my badge after showing proof that I got the vaccination sounds like a terrific idea. We should run with it! Those who were responsible enough to get the vaccine shouldnt be forced to wear a mask, and showing proof that we are vaccinated seems like a win for everyone.
To date, masks are still mandatory for all employees and fans ages 2 and over at all times while at Riverfront Stadium. Outside. Unless you are in your seat eating or drinking.
I’m with the “proceed with caution” group - I’d like for us to give it a few more weeks to see what the infection rates do in our part of the country before jumping to change what we’ve been doing in our space. I agree that we’ve been lucky in the space - and hope that luck holds.
I need to read the details on the CDC recommendations, but that is kind of where I think we should look for guidance. So count me moving to the no mask side. Stickers seem like a good move. We have a lot of immunocompromised people at the space and I would want to make sure no one that hasn’t been vaccinated is maskless. I would feel awful if we loosened the requirement and it killed someone.
“Walensky also said that fully vaccinated people entering spaces where they don’t know the vaccination status of others, like at concerts, need not worry and can still be there mask-less.”
You are rocking it!
Someone please correct me if I am wrong I am no expert in medicine but I do read the research. Being vaccinated, for anything, does NOT stop you being infected with said disease it merely makes your immune system capable of fighting off that infection. Until your body fights off the infection you are capable of infecting others even while showing no symptoms yourself. It seems to me caution is the wise man’s tool in these times.
The whole press briefing is definitely worth watching and absorbing (not just the sound bites and the spin attached by the different media outlets). I suspect we’ll have a good deal to discuss at next Thursday’s board meeting on this topic!
The updated guidance for fully vaccinated folks on the CDC website is easy to read, and the Safer Activities article is good too with a good comparison of what activities are safe for those who are and are not yet vaccinated.
Keep the civil discussion coming so we have a good sense of what ideas and opinions the membership has to help inform our decisions.
I’ve taken some time to review the updated CDC Guidelines and followed some of the news stories with the latest information.
CDC says if you are vaccinated you no longer need to wear a mask nor do you need to maintain social distancing. This guidance is based on their conclusions that the vaccination protects you from the virus and also it keeps you from transmitting the virus to others even if they are unvaccinated (this seems really important).
Our state and local guidelines no longer require a mask. Pretty much everywhere I go masks are not required and many people are not wearing them. Quite a few people still do wear masks which is fine, of course.
In my opinion the Board should make mask wearing optional and they should not require proof of vaccination to go without a mask. Here are some of my reasons for this position
- Previously referenced CDC guidance as well as the state and local guidance
- Vaccine is readily available and supply has far outstripped demand. There is no cost to get the vaccine. If anyone in the makerspace does not have the vaccine I think it is their choice at this point.
- Some people have chosen to not get the vaccine for their own reasons. They are assuming that risk for their own reasons and I would not presume that I (or the Board for that matter) know their situation better than they do.
- I don’t think the Board should unintentionally put pressure on people to get a vaccine they may or do not want.
- People should be free to manage the risk of their situation in the manner they see fit.
- Requiring “proof” of vaccination may not be legal (I don’t know the law on this). Medical privacy is very sensitive and I think the Board is treading in a grey area if they require proof. Asking someone about their medical status is intrusive and I personally don’t think it is appropriate.
This is my point of view for consideration by the board as they deliberate this important issue. I hope I came across as civil the same as everyone else has been. I certainly did not mean to come across as uncivil or confrontational. This is a great opportunity for us to set an example for how to discuss difficult and polarizing topics constructively. I wish our elected leaders (in government not our board) could act the same way.
Cheers!
One thing you may want to keep in mind that is not obvious on the surface is that the makerspace has a high number of members that are in the vulnerable category. I am not saying we should all be masked, but that needs to be a consideration. (I know probably 6-7 for sure and that is just the ones I know.)
I wouldn’t be as concerned with the vaccinated, but I would really hate to see one of them get it from someone roaming around unvaccinated and not realizing that we have a relatively high vulnerable population. (That is, I don’t think the answer is obvious.)
Just 1 data point…when I went in for surgery this morning, the hospital required masks only for those without a vaccination card.