Lots of coronavirus stuff.

Important developments in the pandemic.

By Ben Guarino  Email The Post's coronavirus coverage linked in this newsletter is free to access from this email.   The latest The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday it's mostly okay for fully vaccinated people to ditch their masks indoors. But those recommendations have generated a flurry of questions from the public and epidemiologists alike.  “The guidance shifts all the burden onto individuals to be ‘on their honor’ and choose the appropriate actions when deciding whether to wear a mask,” said Lisa Maragakis, an infectious-disease epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, to The Post. “There is no way to know who is vaccinated and who is not in most scenarios. The likely result is that almost no one will wear a mask.” The virus continues to infect 35,000 people a day in the United States, and physicians interviewed by The Post said the advice risks undermining two precautions — masks and distancing — shown to help stop spread. Even if you're vaccinated, you may be still be required to mask up in stores — Target, Home Depot, CVS and Harris Teeter are among the retail chains that will maintain their masking rules. And the CDC recommendations don't exempt vaccinated travelers from masks on planes, trains and buses. Parents may be perplexed about what to do when their children aren't vaccinated or aren't yet eligible. We know it's a lot. If you're looking for a guide to the new mask guidelines, read this. These recommendations raise the possibility unvaccinated people will simply stop wearing masks. How many people could that be? Post reporter Aaron Blake writes that, based on a recent Economist/YouGov poll, “two-thirds of those who won’t get vaccinated are rather prepared to venture out into society and interact with other people who might or might not be vaccinated.” The CDC's new guidance reflects declining nationwide case counts and confidence in vaccines. A maskless President Biden channeled this confidence in an address in the Rose Garden Thursday. “Better days are ahead,” the president promised. Scientists, meanwhile, are starting to openly discuss the pandemic's end. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director Anthony S. Fauci told The Post that, if 70 percent of adults are vaccinated by the fall, “we’re going to get out of the epidemic stage and much more into the control stage.” There are caveats to this ending, though: It's improbable the coronavirus will be eradicated, and the winter could bring with it the need for masks or booster shots. Pfizer and Moderna vaccine trials are underway for children younger than 12. These young subjects get a small dose of the vaccine — and playground cred. “I was like the most famous kid in the school,” a 10-year-old participant in a Pfizer trial told The Post. “Kids came up to me saying, ‘Is it true you got the covid-19 vaccine?’ My mom told us that we’re going to be a part of helping the world and we’re basically making history right now.” Other important news House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has not relaxed mask rules in the chamber, drawing backlash from Republican lawmakers. The vaccines are very protective, but they're not perfect, as illustrated by eight infections among fully vaccinated members of the New York Yankees.  The president of the American Federation of Teachers, the second-largest teachers union, said that in the fall schools should be open for in-person classes, five days a week. A former aide to U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.) has accused the congressman of failing to protect his staff from an outbreak in his office. (The aide also says the representative let his son dwell in the U.S. Capitol's basement.) Across almost all mainstream media outlets, the message is consistent: If you can get the vaccine, get it. But on Fox News, viewers receive clashing views from anchors and opinion hosts.   Guide to the pandemic Track confirmed cases, hospitalizations and deaths in the U.S. and the spread around the world. U.S. vaccine distribution and delivery, tracked by state. Guides: Finding vaccine appointments | Vaccines | Variants | Masks Follow updates about the pandemic from Post reporters across the globe. Submit a question and we may answer it in a future story or newsletter.    Your questions, answered “I am eager to get my 14 year old vaccinated, but I understand that there may be concerns about the long-term effects. One thought is that it could effect growing systems like the reproductive system. In a 'Handmaid's Tale' sort of dystopia, could this vaccine stop reproduction?" — Kate in Virginia One thing nobody has to worry about is a coronavirus vaccine creating a Margaret Atwood-style reproductive apocalypse. The CDC advises pregnant women to get immunized. And not only have pregnant women safely done so, research indicates vaccine-generated antibodies helpfully pass on to infants.  It sounds like you’ve come across an earlier false claim that the vaccines can cause infertility, supposedly by making the immune system attack the placenta. But the claim is “a complete myth,” Sean O’Leary, vice chair of the Committee on Infectious Diseases for the American Academy of Pediatrics, told The Post recently. Researchers even studied reactions with the placenta specifically and found no cause for concern. We wrote about that and other common concerns about the vaccines this week. A vaccine triggers the immune system, and this engagement is often reflected as common side effects like headaches or tiredness. Here are those side effects documented in 12- to 15-year-olds given the Pfizer vaccine in a clinical trial, as Post reporters wrote in another FAQ for adolescents: The most common side effects were similar to those seen in adults, including pain at the injection site, fatigue, headache, chills, muscle aches and fevers. The side effects tended to be somewhat more common in adolescents. For example, 63 percent of participants 16 and older reported fatigue, but 78 percent of those 12 to 15 years old did. About 14 percent of people 16 and over reported fevers, but 24 percent of younger adolescents did. Side effects were most common after the second dose. The vaccine has also caused very rare anaphylaxis reactions. As for longer-term monitoring: Most vaccine side effects occur within two months of receiving the shots. That is why the FDA concentrated on this data when considering whether the vaccines were safe. The children in the trial will continue to be monitored for two years. However, very rare side effects are often not picked up within clinical trials. Longer-term monitoring of the safety of the vaccine will continue to track adverse events, severe cases of covid-19 that cause hospitalization or death, and cases of a serious and rare inflammatory syndrome. The bottom line is the Pfizer vaccine given to young teenagers is exactly the same as the one given to teenagers 16 and up, as well as to adults. It provides robust protection against covid-19.   Today’s top reads Find more stories, analysis and op-eds about the pandemic on our coronavirus page. Are they experimental? Can they alter DNA? Experts tackle lingering coronavirus vaccine fears. By Allyson Chiu and Lindsey Bever ●  Read more »   The CDC shouldn’t have removed restrictions without requiring proof of vaccination Opinion ●  By Leana S. Wen ●  Read more »   ‘Together as a family’: Multigenerational living rises in pandemic By Michele Lerner ●  Read more »   Disney, hit hard by the pandemic, signals its belief that bright days are imminent By Steven Zeitchik ●  Read more »   Luxury ranches and mini-moons: How covid has changed honeymoons By Natalie B. Compton ●  Read more »