Your questions, answered "Given the CDC recommendation on indoor masking for vaccinated and unvaccinated people, what's the thought on eating indoors in a restaurant? Too risky again?" — Jody in California These days, particularly with the highly transmissible delta variant as the dominant strain in the United States, many activities pose at least some risk of contracting the coronavirus, including dining indoors. But health experts say the level depends on various circumstances — mainly, your personal vaccination status and the vaccination rate in your community, as well as the rate of delta transmission in your area. The Washington Post's Emily Heil and Tim Carman outlined the best dining scenario based on interviews with experts. · You are vaccinated. (The three major vaccines are highly effective against the worst effects of covid and critical illness, experts say.) · You are dining with others who are vaccinated, and none of them are showing signs of sickness. · You are eating either outside (the best situation) or in a restaurant that is well-ventilated, not packed with diners and located in a community that has a low transmission rate. · You wear a mask whenever talking to a server or moving about the restaurant. And the worst dining scenario: · You live in a community with a substantial or high level of coronavirus transmission, based on the CDC's Data Tracker. · Your community has a low rate of fully vaccinated residents. · You are not vaccinated yourself or are dining with people who are not vaccinated. · You're eating inside a restaurant where the owners have returned to 100 percent capacity and maskless diners and servers are packed together in a poorly ventilated space with no windows. · You have no idea the vaccination status of anyone else in the restaurant, including the employees. · You live with someone who is immunocompromised, elderly or unvaccinated. "Your vaccination is an umbrella," Peter Chin-Hong, professor of medicine and infectious-disease specialist at the University of California at San Francisco, told The Post. "When it's raining, it can shelter you, but when there is a big thunderstorm, you can't always dodge all the rain." As Heil and Carman explained: In other words, Chin-Hong said, vaccinated folks have to be mindful of the conditions when venturing out in public. Look for restaurants that require masks, mandate vaccinations for employees or maybe even require diners to show proof of vaccination. Check the level of coronavirus transmission in your county and refrain from indoor dining if the levels are high or substantial, especially if you have vulnerable people in your pod. Even if you are vaccinated, new evidence has shown you could pick up the virus without knowing it and potentially transmit it to, say, your unvaccinated children at home. But diners also play a role in creating a safe space. They should wear masks when talking with servers and moving about the restaurant. They should avoid crowded spaces and stay at home when they show any signs of illness, even if they are vaccinated, experts say. | 
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