Letter to Rochelle Walensky, Director Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Karl Schultz, Commandant United States Coast Guard - Golden Urges Feds to Drop Unnecessary Mask Mandate for Commercial Fishermen

Letter

Dear Director Walensky and Admiral Schultz:

Thank you for the ongoing efforts of CDC employees and Coast Guardsmen to keep the public
safe during the COVID-19 pandemic. I write in response to feedback from Maine fishermen who
report that the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) is enforcing a mask mandate on commercial fishermen
that applies at all times when they are onboard a fishing vessel. While I understand the
importance of masking for COVID-19 mitigation, I respectfully urge your agencies to
collaborate to update masking requirements for commercial fishermen to reflect the low risk of
COVID-19 transmission by fully vaccinated people in non-public settings. Updating the
guidance to clarify that it does not apply to small commercial fishing vessels would ease an
unnecessary compliance burden on fishermen, free up USCG resources, and help maintain public
trust that COVID-19-related public health mandates are science-driven and necessary.

There are two primary problems with the CDC and USCG's current joint approach to mask
requirements on commercial fishing vessels. First, the requirement is derived from an executive
order (EO 13998) aimed at promoting the safety of "public modes of transportation," a definition
that includes "public maritime vessels, including ferries." While it makes sense to impose stricter
masking requirements on transportation hubs and modes of transportation where members of the
public from different households congregate in close quarters, it is hard to understand why the
agencies have interpreted this executive order to cover commercial maritime vessels that are not
open to the general public.

Second, the CDC updated its masking guidance on May 13th to reflect that fully vaccinated
people can safely participate in a wide range of indoor and outdoor activities without wearing a
mask. While other federal, state, local, or private sector masking rules may apply in a given
situation, it appears that many activities on commercial fishing vessels should be safe for fully
vaccinated fishermen to resume without needing to wear a mask. This is particularly true for the
lobster boats common on Maine's coast, where a captain works alone or with a small number of
crew in the open air to set and pull traps. So, it no longer appears warranted to require all
commercial fishermen to mask at all times onboard non-public vessels.

I stand ready to work with your agencies as they consider updates to COVID-19 mask mandates
to reflect our evolving understanding of vaccine effectiveness and how that impacts virus
transmission risks in settings including commercial fishing vessels. Should you have any questions about this letter, please contact me or direct your staff to contact Will Woodworth
(will.woodworth@mail.house.gov).

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