Covid-19: Italy ends health pass and most restrictions
Passers-by near the Pantheon in Rome, February 11, 2022. © Alfredo Falcone, LaPresse - via AP
Text by: RFI Follow
2 mins
May 1 was a long-awaited day for Italians: the government lifted some of the health restrictions with the end of the health pass and especially that of the wearing of compulsory masks in bars, restaurants or supermarkets.
A relief for many inhabitants of the peninsula who had imposed a very rigorous use of the pass.
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With our correspondent in Rome,
Éric Sénanque
In this bar located not far from the Vatican, regulars like Gianluca are smiling this Saturday morning: this is now the end of the mandatory mask inside.
“
Me, I work in tourism and, after two years of obscurity, I am happy that everything is back to how it was before
, testifies Gianluca.
We have been waiting for this for a long time, Italy is one of the first countries to have adopted the health pass and
it has been very restrictive.
So yes, it really is a day that we were looking forward to.
»
Wilson, the owner of the bar, is also relieved, especially as tourists
have returned en masse
to Rome in recent weeks: "
Finally, we see the light at the end of the tunnel, it was really time to go from the front.
Many customers still don't believe it and ask me if they can take off their mask.
»
The mask maintained in transport and in the cinema
No more masks in bars, restaurants or shops as well as in most workplaces… No more need to show
a health pass to travel to Italy
either .
However, wearing the FFP2 mask remains appropriate
for transport
or to go to the cinema.
The Italian government has assured that it has "
trusted the citizens
", but remains nevertheless on its guard because
the epidemic has not been stopped
.
Thus, the concerts scheduled for May 1, even outside, will have to be done with a mask in the pocket to put on in case the crowds are too compact.
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To read also:
Covid-19: BA.4 and BA.5, the new strains of Omicron closely monitored by the WHO
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