ICYMI: Club mask policy changes to 'recommended,' March 1

Following is a statement from Jen Judson, 115th President of the National Press Club, on modifications of Club policy related to vaccination and mask requirements in light of Mayor Muriel Bowser’s Feb. 14 announcement.

From the beginning of the pandemic, the National Press Club has adopted a policy of “safety first.” To us that means operating a Club that is safe for our members and our staff and the guests of our events business. During the Omicron surge it was vital that the Mayor became a partner of the business community and provided policies that required vaccination for entry to businesses and an indoor mask mandate. We like to see caseloads, hospitalizations and deaths all significantly lower than at the peak of the surge. We agree that it is time to explore changes to give our members and guests a better social experience at the Club without losing our safety-first approach. And, as the Mayor says, we have to be nimble enough to reinstall protections if we see a change in the data.

Effective March 1, we will move our mask policy from the current ‘masks required’ to ‘masks recommended, but not required.’ The Club can be a busy place with a high density of people and it has always been a CDC policy that masks are recommended in such environments. Our staff, who are in the facility every day (and often at a workstation without much freedom of movement) will likely continue to wear masks for their protection -- although it will not be required. As most of you know, the staff is all vaccinated.

Regarding our requirement of proof of vaccination for entry into the Club, we think that is one of the core principals of safety-first and we are going to continue to require that of members and guests until at least March 31 and will check proof of vaccination on entry. We will continue to assess that situation and the data during the next several weeks. We think -- especially as we lift the mask mandate -- we should continue to have the Club operate as a fully vaccinated facility. This will give the best possible experience to our members and guests.

It is important to note that restaurants and businesses are allowed to have their own policies or to implement these changes on their own timetables. The mayor is not mandating there be no masks and is not saying business must stop checking for vaccination – she is just saying that the City will let businesses decide what they want to do. We are planning at this time to be able to go forward with a modified version of these changes on or close to the Mayor’s proposed schedule if conditions continue to be favorable. We have taken into account that nationwide 81 percent of eligible Americans have at least one shot. In the DC-area it is more than that. Among our club members and guests and staff even higher. We believe the vast majority of people who might come to the Club in 2022 have already been vaccinated based on statistics.

Finally, I want to ask for your continued patience. We all have our own unique perspectives on this. Some of us are immuno-compromised. We may have had two shots plus a booster but none of that produced a good immune response. We are vaccinated but not protected. So we appreciate an environment where everyone else is vaccinated. Some of us, like me, have kids at home who are too young to be vaccinated. We are worried about bringing the virus home to them. So we appreciate the safest possible environment. We appreciate the Club for its warmth and history – but also for its safety-first policy. Thank you!

Look forward to seeing you at the Club where I will be wearing a mask for now!

Jen Judson