Spain will reintroduce the use of face masks in hospitals following a surge in flu and COVID cases.
The nationwide mandate by Spain’s central government is due to come into force on 10 January – despite opposition from some regional health authorities.
Spain’s minister of health, Monica Garcia, said the move was necessary to protect healthcare professionals.
“We are talking about putting on a mask when you enter a health centre and taking it off when you leave,” Ms Garcia told Spain’s Cadena Ser radio.
“I don’t think it’s a drama. It’s a basic and undeniable measure of the first order,” he added.
This follows six regions, Valencia, Catalonia, Murcia and the Canary Islands, which imposed regional mask mandates.
Spain’s central government proposed on Monday extending that requirement nationwide but received pushback from other regions – many of whom argued that mask use should be recommended but not obligatory.
Garcia’s ministry imposed the measure after failing to reach an agreement with regional health authorities.
While regional governments are in charge of healthcare in Spain, the central government can intervene if it deems it necessary.
Spain officially declared the end of the fitness crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic last July, saying that wearing a mask is no longer mandatory in fitness centers, care centers and pharmacies.
It is one of the last countries in Europe to do so.
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However, it has seen a spike in cases of COVID, flu and other respiratory illnesses over the Christmas and New Year period, in what is being labelled a “tridemic”.
According to data from the state-run Carlos III Health Institute, in the last week of 2023 flu cases increased by 75% in Spain, with 4,383 cases per 100,000 people.
COVID-19 cases have recently leveled off and 10% tested positive through the end of 2023, according to the institute.
However, he adds that the virus is causing an increasing number of hospitalizations, among older people.