The Corona rules in NRW will be almost completely lifted after April 2nd, 2022. What does this mean for the mask requirement? In which areas does it still apply?
Hamm – The federal government will drop almost all corona rules after April 2, 2022. If March 20th is already the so-called “Freedom Day”, that will now take place around two weeks later. Despite the high number of infections and burdened hospitals in North Rhine-Westphalia, this also affects the obligation to wear masks. With the new Corona Protection Ordinance, it is no longer indoors. If you want, you can continue to wear them. It is seldom mandatory. We reveal where.
Mask requirement in NRW: basic protection or corona rule? It still applies here
The outcry in politics was great because of the falling Corona rules. At the meeting of the health ministers, the federal states of North Rhine-Westphalia, Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg, Hesse and Saarland failed in their attempt to extend the measures by at least four more weeks. Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach (SPD) then spoke of a “conflict-ridden situation”, especially since the federal states’ application had not found a majority.
Nationwide corona restrictions can no longer be implemented, according to politicians. There is no longer a nationwide threat to the health system. From April 3, 2022, the so-called basic protection will replace the corona rules that had previously applied throughout Germany. Not only the obligation to wear masks, but also access regulations (2G, 3G) are no longer applicable in many places.
What does that mean for NRW? Anyone who visits school, gastronomy, swimming pools or retail from April 3, 2022 is no longer subject to a mask requirement. Edeka, Kaufland, Aldi and Co. have already taken a position on the end of the mask requirement. But it is also clear: Anyone who feels uncomfortable without mouth and nose protection after two years can still use it.
Mask requirement in NRW: Politics in dispute over suspension in school operations
In particular, the falling mask requirement in schools from April 4th provides plenty of material for discussion. School Minister Yvonne Gebauer (FDP) announced on Wednesday that the number of infections was stable. The vice chairman of the SPD parliamentary group, Jochen Ott, added that the numbers would even show a downward trend. However, it is precisely that one that is endangered so shortly before the Easter holidays due to the end of the mask requirement. In NRW there is still no reason to establish stricter protective measures, it is said.
The situation is different indoors where vulnerable people are. The mask requirement in North Rhine-Westphalia also applies after April 2, 2022:
- medical/nursing facilities (doctor’s surgeries, hospitals, nursing homes, etc.),
- public transport (bus and train),
- asylum and refugee accommodation,
- community accommodation for the homeless,
- judicial institutions.
- .
Even if a mask requirement only applies here, such an obligation can also be regulated by the house rules. Many cultural institutions in North Rhine-Westphalia, for example, initially want to stick to a mask requirement – such as the opera and theater in Cologne or the theater in Dortmund.
“I’m counting on everyone now. For your own protection and, above all, for the protection of people who are particularly at risk, I strongly advise you to continue to wear the mask in crowded indoor areas at least until the number of infections has really decreased significantly. We owe that to the many employees in the hospitals and care facilities who have been pushing their limits for a long time,” said NRW Minister of Health Karl-Josef Laumann on the new Corona Protection Ordinance.
The corona measures in NRW could only apply again if the state government, in cooperation with the individual municipalities and municipalities, relied on the hotspot regulation. Only then would the mask requirement in NRW return to public life. However, it doesn’t look like that until now. *wa.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA.
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