Enlarge image
A couple wearing masks in the center of the Spanish capital Madrid
Photograph:
Luis Soto / dpa
In Spain, a mask mandate has come into force in state health facilities. The trigger is a sharp increase in flu and corona cases after the holidays. "We must do this to protect the most vulnerable," said Health Minister Mónica García. Previously, some regions had already ordered the wearing of masks in health centers.
Enlarge image
Spanish Health Minister Mónica García in Madrid in December
Photo: J.J. Guillen / EPA
The order applies to the whole of Spain, but municipalities can move from regulation to recommendation if the number of cases decreases for two consecutive weeks. For example, for private clinics and pharmacies, which were also affected by the obligation in an original proposal by the Ministry of Health, the wearing of masks is only recommended.
According to the Spanish daily El País, the regional government in the Basque Country has already announced that it will consider legal action against the decision. The order of the Ministry of Health is therefore an encroachment on its competences. The regional government had previously decided that a recommendation for mask-wearing would suffice.
The number of cases in Spain is difficult to compare with those in Germany, among other things because hardly any PCR tests are carried out in Germany and Covid diseases are therefore no longer registered. The last figure published by the Ministry of Health in the Corona Pandemic Radar for viral wastewater testing is from 3 January. After that, the viral load in the wastewater measuring points had dropped significantly again.
In December, Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach recommended vaccinations and the wearing of masks on public transport again due to rising Corona numbers. Since the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, 180,578 deaths have been registered in Germany in which people died from or with a corona infection.
hba/Reuters