Dr. Anthony Fauci this week said Americans are "misinterpreting" the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) guidance on masks, stating it is "not" equivalent to the removal of mask mandates.

"I think people are misinterpreting, thinking that this is a removal of a mask mandate for everyone. It's not," Fauci said during an Axios virtual event.

Rather, Fauci described the CDC guidance as "an assurance to those who are vaccinated that they can feel safe, be they outdoors or indoors."

"It's not their fault," Fauci continued. "People either read them quickly, or listen and hear half of it. They are feeling that we're saying: 'You don't need the mask anymore.' That's not what the CDC said."

"They said: If you are vaccinated, you can feel safe — that you will not get infected either outdoors or indoors," he continued. "It did not explicitly say that unvaccinated people should abandon their masks."

Fauci's remarks follow his defense of businesses opting to keep sweeping mask mandates in place, because, according to the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director, such entities are unable to confirm who is vaccinated and who is not, presenting a "problem."