WATCH: HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra Struggles to Tell CNN’s John Berman Why Vaccinated People Should Wear Masks

Health and Human Services secretary Xavier Becerra said in a Monday interviewed that vaccinated Americans should continue wearing masks to be “as safe as possible.”

“We’re trying to make sure that the guidance that is put out there by the federal government is one that really focuses on safety,” Becerra said in a segment with CNN’s John Berman. “That’s why the indoor policy should still be masking. But clearly, if you’ve been vaccinated fully and you’re with folks who are also vaccinated … the risk does diminish radically. But you could end up being a carrier and not know it and if somebody hasn’t been vaccinated and doesn’t wear a mask, guess what, there’s still that potential of getting covid.”

Berman pushed Becerra for clarity on what he meant, noting that he had personally been vaccinated. “My safety, I don’t think, is being particularly impacted by wearing a mask. If someone else is not vaccinated, it might be their safety that’s being affected, so there’s two issues here. Number one is that my concern [is] that someone who’s chosen to be unvaccinated is making a bad choice. And question two is, maybe there should be laws that allow them to be kept out of the building.”

The attorney general once again demurred. “Well, you’ve hit right on the point, John,” Becerra replied. “How do we get to a point where we get everyone to be as safe as possible? You know, it’s always difficult to get people on motorcycles to wear helmets for their own safety. It was tough at times to get people to wear seatbelts for their own safety. What we’re simply saying is the best guidance from those who are the experts in health care is, be as safe as possible by wearing a mask, even if you’re vaccinated. But yeah, if you’re vaccinated and around people who are vaccinated, clearly you’re going to be far better off.”

Berman moved on from the issue without pressing Becerra any further. Dr. Anthony Fauci suggested over the weekend that the federal government might tamp down on mask requirements in the near future, though he said it was “conceivable” that they could become a seasonal phenomenon for preventing a range of illnesses.

Watch above via CNN.

CORRECTION: A previous version of this post incorrectly identified Becerra by his former job as California Attorney General. It has been updated to reflect his current position. 

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