New CDC indoor mask rule may threaten economic momentum and upend return-to-work plans

The federal government’s abrupt about-face on the need for indoor mask-wearing is clouding prospects for Americans to return to the office in large numbers, raising fears that the ultra-infectious delta variant could threaten the economic recovery.

What just weeks ago seemed like a smooth return to pre-pandemic life suddenly felt shaky on Tuesday following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s call for vaccinated individuals to resume indoor mask-wearing in high-risk areas.

The agency’s reversal of its May 13 decision to relax mask requirements was a reminder that — 16 months after the pandemic first torpedoed the U.S. economy — the crisis is not yet vanquished.

Wall Street economists largely brushed off the dollars-and-cents impact of the CDC’s recommendation and insisted the economy is likely to steam ahead. But with the delta variant quadrupling coronavirus infections in July, corporate chief executives are growing worried about bringing workers back into crowded offices, a move that many employers have scheduled for September.