Many small businesses say they'll leave decision to de-mask up to customers

Americans who are vaccinated against COVID-19 now have a green light from federal health authorities to take off their masks, signaling a more hopeful phase in the nation's 14-month battle against the pandemic. Yet many small businesses, nearly battered into submission by the virus, are choosing to proceed more cautiously.

Kay Lee, the owner of Otte, a women's boutique in Manhattan's West Village neighborhood in New York City, said her customers typically mask up without her having to ask. Her staff, who are are fully vaccinated, also wear masks. "When customers walk in, they wear their masks. No one takes them off," Lee told CBS MoneyWatch.