Spanish Health Minister Carolina Darias announced that Spain will cease a demand to wear masks outside next week, reversing a late December directive to combat an extraordinary rise of coronavirus illnesses caused by a highly contagious mutation.
The Spanish Cabinet will end the mandate next Tuesday after determining that the infection levels have peaked, and the administration expects the adjustments to take effect on Thursday, February 10, Darias told Cadena SER radio on Friday.
Masks will be required in all indoor public venues, including public transportation, and whenever residents are unable to maintain a safe distance of 1.5 metres between them outside.
The government’s main response to the spread of omicron was the outdoor mask mandate, which was enacted on December 22 as many people were prepared to reunite with loved ones for Christmas.
Some specialists denounced the choice as a purely aesthetic gesture that had little impact on the spread of the disease.
According to official health ministry data, the virus spread quickly in November and peaked on Jan. 21 with 3,418 new infections per 100,000 population in two weeks, a pandemic high. The spread of the disease has slowed since then, and the 14-day infection rate has reduced to 2,420 infections per 100,000 persons on Thursday.
Authorities attribute the lower admission rate of persons infected with COVID-19 in hospitals to a high vaccination rate of roughly 81 percent of the 47 million population.
COVID-19 has caused over 94,000 deaths in Spain, according to government figures.
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