Spain has relaxed further coronavirus restrictions by partially ending the near two-year-long obligatory use of masks indoors.
The government decree keeps masks mandatory for visitors and staff in medical centres and nursing homes, although patients will not always be obliged to wear them. Masks will also be mandatory on all forms of public transportation, but not in stations or airports.
It remains unclear what impact the decree will have on workplaces such as public and private company offices, banks, factories and stores as the government is letting employers decide to keep them in use if they deem there is a health risk. In turn, they are recommended but not obligatory in multitudinous gatherings, in packed areas or in the presence of vulnerable people.
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Schools are also exempt from having to use them. Masks became obligatory indoors and outdoors shortly after the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in Spain in early 2020.
The restriction for outdoor use was lifted in mid-2021 but imposed again between December and February amid a major surge of infections of the highly contagious Omicron variant.
Health minister Carolina Darias said: "The mask without doubt has been one of the most identifiable measures over the past two years and it will no longer be obligatory. They will continue to be with us as an element of protection, particularly for the most vulnerable."
With more than 92% of Spaniards over 12 years old having received at least two vaccine doses and the number of coronavirus infections and deaths dropping sharply in recent months. Spain has also eliminated mandatory home isolation for people infected with the virus who experience no symptoms or mild ones.
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