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WALLACE: As states lift restrictions a year into the pandemic lockdowns, are some of them moving too quickly? Joining us now, Dr. Tom Frieden, former director of the Centers for Disease Control. Doctor, you just heard Governor Hutchinson talk about lifting mandatory restrictions in his state. You see with the governors of Texas and Mississippi are doing, both on restrictions for businesses and they are also lifting the mask mandates this week. Your reaction to all of that.
DR. TOM FRIEDEN, FORMER CDC DIRECTOR: Well, first off, I think, Chris, it is true, we are really sick and tired of this virus. And there's a lot of good news coming. More vaccines, more people getting vaccines, more options for vaccines and really good data that vaccination is making a big difference. So I would make a big distinction between reopening the economy and lifting mask mandates. One of them you could debate. The other is simply wrong.
WALLACE: Well, explain that a little bit. Clearly you think (Sure.) that opening businesses is -- is debatable but - - but lifting the mask mandates is flat wrong?
FRIEDEN: That's right. And -- and this is the way to think about it. There are a lot of harms to closing businesses, not just economic harms, educational harms when it comes to schools, personal hardship, health harms from people not having work. So it's really important to get our economy open again as safely as possible. Now, I wouldn't necessarily open everything. For example, an indoor stadium with people coming from all over, that's a really bad idea. On the other hand, masks, you know, the only freedom a mask inhibits is the freedom of the virus to spread and kill people. Masks work. Mask mandates work. And lifting mask mandates is very dangerous, particularly with the risk of more dangerous variants emerging and spreading.
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