Masks To Remain Mandatory in Andalucia, For Now

Restrictions this weekend in Valencia because of Covid

Restrictions this weekend in Valencia because of Covid. Source: Pixabay

Masks will remain mandatory in Andalucia for the foreseeable future, a senior health official has said while officials in Madrid hinted they could be gone by July.

The announcement comes after some regions of Spain indicated they would do away with the obligation to wear masks outdoors as early as this month.

“The one thing that works to prevent Covid-19 is the vaccine, which is very, very effective. But what most protects us is the mask, in addition to distance and hand hygiene, “said the Andalucian Minister of Health and Families, Jesus Aguirre, on May 31.

The Minister added that some progress towards easing restrictions has been made. “We have lowered our guard a lot. It seems that we have defeated the virus and we have not done it,” said the Minister who urged citizens to continue to take the risks of infection seriously.

“We are doing well in terms of hospital intakes, but we are not doing well in terms of incidence,” he said. Any de-escalation will be cautious, slow and clam, he stressed.

“There is no need to run,” he added.

Masks have been mandatory across Spain since last summer. However, the restrictions may be coming to an end.

Speaking at a press conference in Madrid yesterday, Spain’s top epidemiologist Fernando Simon, said the need to wear masks outdoors might be over later this summer.

“If the situation evolves as it is currently doing. I believe it could be feasible that the mask would not be needed in outdoor open spaces in mid or late June and very likely, almost with absolute certainty, at the end of July,” he said.


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Deirdre Tynan

Deirdre Tynan is an award-winning journalist who enjoys bringing the best in news reporting to Spain’s largest English-language newspaper, Euro Weekly News. She has previously worked at The Mirror, Ireland on Sunday and for news agencies, media outlets and international organisations in America, Europe and Asia. A huge fan of British politics and newspapers, Deirdre is equally fascinated by the political scene in Madrid and Sevilla. She moved to Spain in 2018 and is based in Jaen.

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