End of mandatory Covid face masks in Spain’s health care facilities and pharmacies expected to be approved by government today

Cabinet ministers in Spain are today (Tuesday, 4 July) expected to approve the end of the mandatory wearing of Covid face masks in health care facilities, social care centres and pharmacies, the only places where the requirement remained. After its publication in the Official State Gazette, which will likely take place on Wednesday, its use will be required only in areas where there are immunocompromised patients, such as cancer units or in operating theatres and intensive care units.

The Cabinet approval is the definitive step after the Ministry of Health and the regions decided to put an end to this restriction in the Interterritorial Council meeting on 23 June, following the publication of the last report prepared by the experts from the Centre for Coordination of Health Alerts and Emergencies (CCAES), headed by Fernando Simón, on the situation of the pandemic in Spain.

Hospitals, healthcare centres, nursing homes (for workers and visitors) and pharmacies were the only spaces in which the use of the mask continued to be mandatory. On 8 February, this protection measure was abolished on public transport, where it had been established on 4 May, 2020, during the first wave of the pandemic.