You no longer need to wear a mask on public transport such as buses, subways, and taxis.

According to the Central Disaster Safety Headquarters today (20th), the obligation to wear masks on public transportation and in supermarkets and pharmacies has been lifted from today.

The obligation to wear masks on public transport has been eliminated for about two years and five months since October 2020, when the central government mandated masks.

In January, the government removed the obligation to wear masks in most indoor spaces except for public transportation and facilities vulnerable to infection, but since then, as the COVID-10 epidemic has continued to decline, public transportation has relaxed quarantine restrictions to voluntarily wear or take off masks.

Since a significant number of citizens are wearing masks autonomously even after the lifting of the obligation to wear masks outdoors in May and September last year and the lifting of the obligation to wear masks indoors in January this year, we believe that even if the mask restrictions are further relaxed, there will be a sharp increase in cases.

The decision was driven by the fact that 2% of the respondents said they would "continue to wear masks indoors" in several polls.

From today, the obligation to wear masks will be removed not only on public transportation but also in open pharmacies in large facilities such as grocery stores and stations.

In a situation where the obligation to wear masks in grocery stores has already disappeared, it has been accepted by some that it is not scientific to allow people to wear masks only in pharmacies in the premises where there are no walls or partitions.

In particular, these open pharmacies mainly sell over-the-counter drugs rather than fill prescriptions, and the number of people with confirmed cases or vulnerable infections is lower than that of regular pharmacies.

However, the quarantine authorities emphasized that wearing a mask is the most effective way to prevent respiratory infectious diseases, and strongly recommended wearing a mask when using public transportation during rush hours, such as during rush hour.

General pharmacies are often sought immediately after using a medical institution, so we maintained the obligation to wear them considering that they are likely to be used by people with confirmed or suspected COVID-5 symptoms, and people at high risk.

In addition, medical institutions such as hospitals, general pharmacies, nursing hospitals, long-term care institutions, mental health promotion facilities, and facilities for the disabled must wear masks because the risk of exposure to the COVID-1 virus is greater than the benefits of mask autonomy.

The government plans to review and announce a roadmap for daily recovery, including the remaining mask mandate and the adjustment of the seven-day quarantine for confirmed cases, later this month.

(Photo = Yonhap News)