The obligation to wear masks and tests for employees in the healthcare system and residents in care facilities will end early on March 1st. This is announced by the Federal Ministry of Health. On Tuesday, the ministry agreed on this with the health ministries of the federal states. The nationwide regulations were originally supposed to expire on April 7th. For visits to medical practices, clinics and nursing homes, masks should therefore continue to apply, said Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach (SPD).
Anyone who visits patients or residents and makes doctor’s appointments must continue to wear a mask. “The protection of vulnerable groups should be worth it to us.” Lauterbach emphasized: “The pandemic is not over yet. But the pandemic has lost its terror. The virus can be controlled in everyday life. And we are drawing the consequences from that.”
Only a few measures are currently in force nationwide. Anyone who wants to visit hospitals or care facilities must wear an FFP-2 mask and be able to prove a negative test. The same applies to employees in the healthcare system. Medical practices and dialysis facilities may only be entered with an FFP-2 mask. In addition, individual federal states may decide on further measures.
The nationwide mask requirement on long-distance trains was recently suspended. This was valid until February 2, 2023. According to the relevant regulations of the federal states, there are no longer any mask requirements in local transport. Gradually, the federal states had also phased out the obligation to isolate people infected with the corona virus.
