ERIE COUNTY, NY— Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz issued the following statement today regarding the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (“CDC”) mask wearing guidance issued earlier today for persons fully vaccinated against COVID-19:

“Today’s new CDC guidance for persons fully vaccinated against COVID-19 is great news and is further proof our local and national efforts to vaccinate all are making a huge difference in the fight against COVID-19. In Erie County, fifty-one percent of all residents aged 17 and above have been fully vaccinated, and just under fifty-one percent of all residents have received at least one dose of the vaccine. While these numbers are good, it is essential that we fully vaccinate more people in our community to properly protect all from a terrible virus that has taken more than 1,800 of our neighbors. Today’s news is further proof of the importance of getting vaccinated, and if you have not yet been vaccinated, I ask you to please consider doing so as soon as possible.

Additionally, because many of the rules and regulations regarding businesses in our state are set by the New York State Department of Health, I call on the New York State Department of Health to expeditiously review the new CDC guidance and align state policies with it.”