Italy lifts mandatory masks as the pandemic slows in the open air Coronavirus pandemic News

People no longer have to wear face masks away from June 28 as the risk level drops.

People in Italy will not have to wear masks away from June 28, the government said, with COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations falling in one of the worst pandemic countries in Europe.

Mandatory masks were imposed in October last year when the country was entering a second wave of infection and authorities were stepping up to charge the case nationwide.

Prime Minister Mario Draghi’s government has been making steady cuts since April to reopen restaurants, bars, cinemas and gyms and allow freedom of movement across the country.

Wearing masks was one of the last rules he kept to himself.

It will not be completely removed, the government said on Monday; people will have to wear masks in public indoor spaces and on public transport.

People are advised to continue wearing a mask when they leave home and to be ready to take them outside for events that are crowded and at greater risk of infecting the virus, such as large gatherings.

The decision will be effective from next Monday, when the nation is expected to have a white zone for COVID-19 to calibrate the lowest risk level of Italy’s four-color color-coded system in its 20 regions.

Nineteen white regions are already there.

The small area north of Valle d’Aosta is an exception – it is yellow, indicating the second lowest level of risk.

“From June 28, we will ignore the need to wear a mask in white areas,” Health Minister Roberto Speranza posted on Facebook after receiving advice from a government expert committee.

The announcement has taken similar decisions in other European states, such as France and Spain, although concerns remain high in Europe about the spread of a new highly contagious Delta variant.

26% of Italians have been completely vaccinated against COVID-19, and about 52 percent have received at least one dose.

Vaccine data are consistent with other major European Union countries.

Meanwhile, cases are at their lowest level in 2021 and the pressure on hospitals is constantly easing. There were 21 deaths and 495 new infections nationwide on Monday.

Italy recorded a total of 127,291 coronavirus deaths and 4.25 million infections.