Entities in Mexico debate whether they will continue with the mandatory use of face coverings

Nuevo León, Nayarit, Coahuila and Quintana Roo are the states in Mexico where the use of masks in outdoor spaces is no longer mandatory, despite the fact that the coronavirus pandemic is not completely overcome.

In the case of Mexico City, in April it will be evaluated to eliminate compulsory use, however, the head of government indicated for two years that citizens would not be fined for not carrying it, which is why its use was always optional in open spaces and at the most critical moments of the health crisis, the authorities advised increase the protection through the mask.

However, the Secretary of Health of Mexico City, Oliva López-Arellano, indicated that she prefers to keep wearing a mask because in the period from October to March there is intensive monitoring of acute and severe respiratory disease, and considered that in April they will analyze the health guidelines for the city taking as reference the resolutions of the Health Council.

In the case of Guanajuato, the former federal Secretary of Health, José Ángel Córdoba, asked the state authorities to be cautious and maintain preventive measures because there are still threats such as the Omicron BA. 2 strain, which has been detected in 600,000 cases in Europe, a continent where many countries have relaxed the use of masks in public spaces.

On March 22, the use of masks ceased to be mandatory in the public spaces of Quintana Roo, a tourist destination that welcomes international visitors. This measure was implemented on the eve of the Easter holiday period, although Governor Carlos Joaquín González, said that in closed places this health security measure must be maintained.

One of the most controversial cases was that of Nuevo León, an entity that since Sunday, March 13, relaxed prevention measures, and that is that Governor Samuel García invited citizens to go out and meet in the common spaces: “Since the weather is very good and today the optional use of face masks in spaces came into force. open: go out, visit our parks, take over the squares, live together.”

This Friday, the federal government's Ministry of Health reported that the entire country would continue to be at an epidemiological traffic light in green, after confirming the downward trend in the number of infections in the country and also with regard to hospitalization rates.

The federal government stresses that vaccination levels in the country are encouraging and that the vast majority of the population has at least the two-dose scheme, and points out that it maintains a permanent campaign for the laggards. He points out that the application of these vaccines has significantly reduced the number of serious hospitalizations and deaths.

According to some experts, Mexico was one of the countries in which the population mostly adopted the use of face coverings as a preventive measure. It should be noted that at the beginning of the pandemic, the Undersecretary of Health, Hugo López Gatell, rejected the effectiveness of this measure and that President Andrés Manuel López Obrador refused to impose the obligation for its use in public spaces and left the decision on the conscience of citizens.

Earlier this week, President López Obrador commented that states have the power to decide whether to keep the mandatory use of masks in open spaces or whether it becomes optional

KEEP READING: