Gross domestic product shrank 3.5% in 2022, contracting for the third time in four years. Although many indoor mask mandates are implemented at the city and county level, six states still have mandates in place: California, Hawaii, Illinois, New Mexico, People wear face masks in the MTR station, a day before government gets rid of the mask rule in Hong Kong, Feb. 28, 2023. Many residents and business owners have said such tough rules damaged Hong Kong's economy and international standing. Miss a day, miss a lot. And because case counts remained high, the public health agency had stuck to its recommendation of indoor masking, including inside schools. Please abide by Rappler's commenting guidelines. The omicron wave, which infected a vast majority of the country, also boosted the nation's immunity from prior infection for the timebeing. Under the mandate, which took effect in July 2020, people who failed to wear masks in public could be fined about $635. But in mid-March the rules were revised; PPEs are no longer required for cabin crew onboard. Iceland Iceland was one of the first countries in 2022 to remove all their internal covid-related restrictions, as well as their entry requirements, returning to a pre-pandemic normal. Once a saver, always a saver: Warren Buffett says generational wealth isnt what it used to be in his annual letter Its bigger than the housing crisis: An influential economist just blamed NIMBYs for American decline, and Elon Musk CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. Despite relaxing border rules late last year, Hong Kongs government had been reluctant to lift the mask mandate amidst calls from various medical professionals to keep the mandate in force for the foreseeable future. Several other countries and territories in Asia have been rolling back COVID-19 restrictions as leaders look to shift to an endemic phase. The removal of the mask mandate may help stimulate interest in Hong Kong, along with the ticket giveaway. "After looking at all the data, the trends While most countries across the globe opened up in a phased manner with the majority relaxing the mask mandate much earlier, Hong Kong continued to follow the line Denmark People in Denmark can be exempted from wearing face masks everywhere, except public transports. As the world continues to live and adapt to the pandemic, several countries, including the Philippines, have lifted the face mask requirement. 2023 Fortune Media IP Limited. Additionally, Hong Kong's population shrunk dramatically during the Covid period. With more than 92% of its population of 67+ million people vaccinated, France chose to lift the majority of its COVID-19 restrictions in March 2022. Almost 70 percent of the population in the USA are in areas of low or medium risk. While most countries across the globe opened up in a phased manner with the majority relaxing the mask mandate much earlier, Hong Kong continued to follow the line set by Beijing. CDC has previously recommended wearing a high-quality mask, such as a tight-fitting N95 version and avoiding areas with low vaccination levels. hide caption. Video, Record numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story, Ed Sheeran says wife developed tumour in pregnancy, Covid origin likely China lab incident - FBI chief, Bieber cancels remaining Justice world tour dates, Ruling party wins Nigeria's presidential election, Uranium particles enriched to 83.7% found in Iran, Finland starts construction of Russia border fence, Trump lashes out at Murdoch over vote fraud case, Daily walk prevents one in 10 early deaths - study, Pictures show devastation after Greece train disaster. As the country continued to curb the cases in 2022, Malaysia lifted the indoor mask mandate in most public areas. "We know that also because children are relatively at lower risk from severe illness that schools can be safe places for children. Face coverings or masks were required at all shops, offices, and hairdressers. All rights reserved. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. While mask rules vary by park, they are still required on all forms of enclosed public transportation, the NPS noted. In 2022, there were 126,900 Filipinos who visited the country. Read about our approach to external linking. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020-2021, most of the world's countries mandated the use of surgical-type masks in an effort to slow the spread of the disease. Hong Kong is ending its mask mandate Wednesday, becoming one of the world's last cities to drop rules demanding face coverings. In February, Spain became the last country in Europe to drop its airplane mask mandate, while Japan will only relax mask recommendations from March 13. Many countries have also implemented mask mandates in fact, more than the number of countries that have imposed vaccine mandates. Wearing face covers in open spaces is no longer a mandate in UAE. Learn how your comment data is processed. In recent days, officials announced that visitors to hospitals and nursing homes would no longer have to show PCR test results, and that starting in March, students would not be required to take daily rapid antigen tests before attending school. Evidence shows that the coronavirus is under control in Hong Kong, without major signs of rebound, Chief Executive John Lee said at a news briefing. In South Korea, for instance, they are still required on public transportation, as well as in hospitals and pharmacies. In case of refusal to use it before or during the flight, you will be reported as an unruly passenger to the respective authorities. The controls, which changed frequently and with little warning, came at a heavy cost to residents and contributed to an exodus from the city. Leaders in Hong Kong hope the easing of requirements will help bring back tourists and businesses. The new guidance recommends that people who are at high-risk of COVID-19 complications should talk to their doctor about how to stay safe in a community that might have moderate risk levels. Hong Kong will stop requiring masks to be worn in public places from Wednesday, drawing to a close the prolonged Covid era that damaged its economy and standing in the world. Ky., Jan. 24, 2022. Offers may be subject to change without notice. The CDC guidance is an acknowledgement that hospitalization rates in recent weeks have fallen dramatically and that highly vaccinated communities would be able to withstand an uptick in cases without overwhelming their local hospital systems. Many countries have also implemented mask mandates in fact, more than the number of countries that have imposed vaccine mandates. Vietnam logged more than 100,000 Filipino visitors prior to the pandemic. Masks are just one protective measure for these airline passengers arriving in Shanghai from Paris. There are other precautionary measures for air travelers in China. Hong Kong was one of the world's last masking holdouts. While most countries across the globe opened up in a phased manner with the majority relaxing the mask mandate much earlier, Hong Kong continued to follow the line set by Beijing. Mateusz Maszczynski honed his skills as an international flight attendant at the most prominent airline in the Middle East and has been flying throughout the COVID-19 pandemic for a well-known European airline. While most countries across the globe opened up in a phased manner with the majority relaxing the mask mandate much earlier, Hong Kong continued to follow the line set by Beijing. It also got the highest ranking in COVID-19 resilience by Bloomberg. Then in February 2022, all states dropped mask mandates. It, however, still recommends wearing face masks indoors, and in public transportation, including airplanes and trains. Masks however, are still required for everyone, onboard all domestic flights. The U.S. isn't the only country to have dropped mask requirements. Hong Kong largely avoided mass outbreaks in the first two years of the pandemic by imposing tight border controls and social distancing policies, in an attempt to bring its caseload as close to zero as possible. The move comes as the government seeks to attract tourists and overseas workers to revitalize the finance hub. - Masks4All, Europe Travel: No Masks Needed In These EU Countries - Forbes, Countries That Have Removed All Internal Covid Restrictions - Travel Off Path, Some countries in Latin America end face mask rules - AA. South Korea has mandated mask-wearing in both indoor and outdoor public locations since the beginning of the pandemic. A federal judge in The updated guidance comes after weeks of pressure from governors and state officials who asked for a clear roadmap at the national level. Harrelson conducted the interview to promote his new film Champions, but things took a turn when he was asked about his perspective on the movie business evolution since the 1990s. While mask mandates and restrictions had started to relax in China in late 2021, the Omicron variant caused a resurgence in both COVID-19 cases and the addendant restrictions that accompany them in early 2022. SIGHTSEEING SPOT. People deserve choice in terms of how they are protecting themselves, and they have been doing this since the very first days of the pandemic, and they are going to continue to do that., Hong Kong, One of Worlds Last Holdouts, Ends Its Mask Mandate, https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/27/world/asia/hong-kong-mask-mandate.html. Kristin Murphy, Deseret News. Although Hong Kong seemed like an outlier with its far-reaching mask mandate, there are still a number of countries that require masks onboard public transport and on commercial aircraft. As the COVID-19 situation improved, the Thai government lifted its mask mandate in 2022 and allowed bars and other night venues to operate for longer hours. Always keeping an ear close to the ground, Matt's industry insights, analysis and news coverage is frequently relied upon by some of the biggest names in journalism. WATCH | Why Hong Kong residents are rushing to get Covid-19 vaccination? No spam, just a weekly roundup of the best aviation news that you don't want to miss. She reports on global health, science, and development, and her work has been published in the New York Times, The British Medical Journal, BBC, The Guardian and other outlets. However, masks must be worn at indoor places and public transport, where a vaccination pass is not needed. Heres where. Under previous rules, the CDC primarily considered COVID-19 case counts to determine risk. The mandate, which went into effect in mid-July 2020, imposed a more than $600 fine to those who didn't follow mask rules. The move will come into effect from March 1 and suggests that the administration is looking to restore some semblance of normalcy. Taiwan announced in February that it has lifted the indoor mask mandate and has eased other restrictions. Checking with any international carrier before heading to the airport is still critical, says Wu. "We look forward to a better tomorrow, which is the 1st of March so that we can all put a smile on our faces say, 'Hello, Hong Kong,'" he said, according to Hong Kong Free Press. This is an indication that Filipinos have found value in wearing a mask and would really want to protect themselves and their families, Vergeire said. This is definitely the most welcome news to us, not only for us being in Hong Kong, living in Hong Kong but also for us running the airline, Mandy Ng, chief executive officer of low-cost carrier Hong Kong Express Airways Ltd., told Bloomberg Television. Some criticised the rule's duration and its sudden scrapping - amid wider criticism of the city's pandemic policies for the past three years. "With the masking requirement removed, we are starting to resume to normalcy comprehensively and that will be very beneficial to the economic development, our international competitiveness, as well as our activities which involve everyone in Hong Kong," Lee said. April 20, 2022, 10:00 AM UTC. However many locals could be seen still wearing masks on Wednesday, local media reported. Siddharth Sridhar, a clinical virologist at the University of Hong Kong, noted that when the virus began spreading in the city in early 2020, its residents almost universally wore masks, even before they became mandatory. In a press conference Tuesday, Chief Executive John Lee said residents and tourists will not be required to wear masks indoors, outdoors or on public transportation for the first time in nearly three years. However, the situation is still in flux, with mandates often lifted or reinstated on a day-to-day basis as cases surge or wane in a given country or new COVID-19 variants emerge. Denmark became the first European country to lift the mask mandate. The city's gross domestic product fell by 3.5% last year. Emirates Wants to Massively Expand its Operations in India By Adding 50,000 Seats Per Week. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had, earlier last week, released new guidelines suggesting that 70 percent of Americans no longer needed to wear masks and needn't avoid crowded spaces. Sa Sa International Holdings Ltd., which sells beauty products, climbed as much as 6.4%. Hong Kongs mask mandate has been in effect since July 2020. Photo/Matthew Busch/The New York Times / Various masks hang at a home in Austin, Texas, on Dec. 20, 2022. Hungary no longer requires masks anywhere. Tourists along the promenade in the Tsim Sha Tsui area in Hong Kong, on Feb. 28, 2023. It, however, experienced a surge in April 2021. Earlier this month, the tourism board launched the "Hello Hong Kong" campaign, giving away 500,000 free airline tickets in an attempt to lure international travelers. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? Mask mandates are still in effect in a small number of places. Most states either don't have a statewide mask mandate in place or have announced plans to drop their mandates soon. South African Airways requires that children over 5 and adults must have a negative PCR test taken 72 hours prior to departure for all international flights, and must complete a "Traveler Health Questionnaire" on arrival, asking such things as, "Did you change your seat during the trip?". The new metrics will place the majority of the country in low to medium COVID-19 risk. Mask mandates stretching for years on end are going to run out of steam in terms of how effective they are, Dr. Sridhar said. A young woman wears a KN95 mask in downtown Salt Lake City on Jan. 26, 2022. In late January, South Korea rolled back face covering requirements for most indoor places. The government has stated it will review its rules on outdoor mask wearing after a two-week trial period, which would place the decision sometime in early May 2022, but added that indoor mask requirements would be "unavoidable for a considerable time. Estonia has no mask rules at this time. But as the pandemic situation continued to get better, the US government announced in 2022 that wearing face masks will no longer be mandatory. He added that while well-fitting masks were highly effective in hospital settings, they were often removed in crowded restaurants and at home, limiting the protection they provided when community transmission was widespread. However, Mexico still has various internal restrictionsincluding mandatory masks in most indoor spaces, social distancing rules, and self-isolation rules. Hawaii An indoor mask mandate, the final statewide A sign on the door of a coffee shop in Manhattan ask for proof of vaccination and the wearing of a mask on the day that a mask mandate went into effect in New York Overall, Hong Kongs economy contracted by 6.1 percent in 2020; it rebounded in 2021, but shrank again in 2022. As of April 2022, many of these restrictions have been lifted, with masks required only in stores and on public transport. Hong Kong is one of the last cities globally to still have a mask mandate. By last year, most European countries that had imposed mask rules had scaled them back everywhere except on planes and some metros. Mask requirements may be a thing of the But Prime Minister Jean Castex said Thursday that restrictions there would gradually lift with mask and remote work mandates easing early next month and COLUMBUS, Ohio Masks will no longer be required for anyone on school buses, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention announced on Friday. 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