COVID-19: Italy to abolish mandatory wearing of face masks outdoors as cases fall

Italy is all set to remove the COVID-19 mandatory rule of wearing face masks in all outdoor places from Friday, 11 February as the nation witnesses decline in number of infections. The announcement regarding the new measure planned by the health ministry has been confirmed by deputy health minister Andrea Costa, The Local Italy reported, citing Italian news agency Ansa. Presently, people in Italy were mandated to wear face masks in all indoor and outdoor public places, as per the directive issued in last year in December following the rise in COVID-19 cases fueled by the highly transmissible Omicron variant. 

The removal of the mask mandate was earlier expected in low risk 'white' zones only. However, Andrea Costa has now informed that the government has decided to remove the mask-wearing rule in outdoor places regardless of the region's COVID-19 risk classification under the four-tiered system, as per The Local Italy report. According to Costa, the rule no longer applies to the people who have been vaccinated under a new decree in force from 5 February.  

Order regarding closure of nightclubs to end on Friday 

The government's decision regarding the closure of nightclubs and dance places will end on Friday, as per the news report. Reportedly, the decision on easing COVID-19 measures in Italy comes after Prime Minister Mario Draghi had during last week announced that the government was intending to "even greater reopening" of the country. The statement of Draghi came after the COVID-19 restrictions, including changes in the quarantine rules in schools and the validity period of vaccine passes that had been announced in Italy. 

COVID-19 situation in Italy

According to statistics provided by Worldometer, as of 8 February, the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Italy is 11,765,767. The number of people who have died due to COVID-19 is 149,512 and 9,688,455 people have recovered from the virus. According to the Italian Health Ministry, 91.26% of the population above the age of 12 have received at least one dose of vaccine. 88.50% of the population over the age of 12 have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19. 35,399,875 people have received the booster dose of COVID-19 in Italy.   

(Image: AP)