Italy and Greece relaxed some COVID-19 restrictions on
Sunday before Europe’s peak summer tourist season, in a sign that life was
increasingly returning to normal.
Greece’s civil aviation authority announced that it was
lifting all COVID-19 rules for international and domestic flights except for
the wearing of face masks during flights and at airports. Previously, air
travelers were required to show proof of vaccination, a negative test or a
recent recovery from the disease.
Under a decree passed by Italy’s health ministry, the
country did away with the health pass that had been required to enter
restaurants, cinemas, gyms and other venues. The green pass, which showed proof
of vaccination, recovery from the virus or a recent negative test, is still
required to access hospitals and nursing homes.
Some indoor mask mandates also ended, including inside
supermarkets, workplaces and stores. Masks are still required on public
transport, in cinemas and in all health care and eldercare facilities.
As of Sunday, visitors to Italy also no longer have to fill
out the EU passenger locator form, a complicated online ordeal required at
airport check-in.
“It was needed,” said Claudio Civitelli, a Rome resident who
was having his morning coffee at a bar near the Trevi Fountain. Until Sunday,
patrons had to wear a mask to enter bars and restaurants, though they could
remove them to eat and drink. “We have waited more than two years.”
At a nearby table, Andrea Bichler, an Italian tourist from
Trentino Alto-Adige, sat with similarly maskless friends.
“It’s much better,” Bichler said. “Let’s say it’s a return
to life, a free life.”
Public health officials say masks still remain highly
recommended for all indoor activities, and private companies can still require
them.
Even with the restrictions increasingly going by the
wayside, public health officials urged prudence and stressed that the pandemic
was still not over. Italy is reporting 699 cases per 100,000 inhabitants and is
recording more than 100 deaths per day, with a total confirmed death toll at
163,500. But hospital capacity remains stable and under the critical threshold.
Given the virus is still circulating, “we should keep up the
vaccine campaign, including boosters, and keep up behavior inspired by
prudence: wearing masks indoors or in crowded places or wherever there’s a risk
of contagion,” said Dr. Giovanni Rezza, in charge of prevention at the health
ministry.
Italy was the epicenter of Europe’s outbreak when it
recorded the first locally transmitted case on Feb. 21, 2020. The government
imposed one of the harshest lockdowns and production shutdowns in the West
during the first wave of the virus, and maintained more stringent restrictions
than many of its neighbors in subsequent waves.