The Trump administration says millions of workers in fields the administration deems "critical" who were exposed to COVID-19 should return to their jobs as long as they wear masks, despite evidence that people without symptoms can spread the novel coronavirus.

The advice spans 16 industries designated by the White House in a memo dated Monday. Those include doctors, nurses and paramedics, but also hundreds of jobs in other fields, such as cafeteria workers, people who process financial transactions, food delivery drivers and defense contractors, according to Vice President Mike Pence, who leads the White House's task force on the coronavirus.

"Those workers, even if they've been exposed to someone with coronavirus, as long as they don't have symptoms, would be able to return to work immediately, wear a mask for two weeks, but otherwise return to the important roles that they play in all of our communities," Pence said Monday in remarks at the Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters in Washington.

The guidance, which is not binding but is designed to guide state and local governments, comes as President Donald Trump has said he is eager to "reopen the economy" by Easter, on April 12, to stanch losses in the stock market and avoid spiking unemployment.

Katie McKeogh, a spokesperson for the Health and Human Services Department, pointed to the administration's March 16 Coronavirus Guidelines for America, which states"if you work in a critical infrastructure industry, as defined by the Department of Homeland Security, such as healthcare services and pharmaceutical and food supply, you have a special responsibility to maintain your normal work schedule."