Germany: Face mask to be abolished on airplanes

 There should be no change to the advice to cover your face with a mask. Lauterbach argues that this is "not an issue of rules, but of reason" in this scenario.

In the course of the legislative debates on the Corona regulations for the next season, new developments keep cropping up. According to the original report by the editorial network Germany (RND), which cited several coalition organizations, the need to wear masks when traveling by airline, which is initially still provided for on a statewide level under the Infection Protection Act, is going to be eliminated. In the same vein, the legislation should specify that FFP2 masks have to be worn in doctor's offices throughout the country, in addition to nursing homes, long-distance trains, and clinics. This is to prevent the spread of the disease.

Vaccinations and masks continue to be the best protection against the anticipated omicron wave, according to Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach (SPD), who made these comments to the German Press Agency on Monday. That is why we make use of both of them."

Therefore, masks should also be worn when patients are present in medical practices. "However, in the event that the pandemic situation permits it, passengers will no longer be required to wear masks when flying." On the other hand, it is strongly suggested that the mask stay in place. This is not a concern about rules; rather, it is a question of common sense.

During the discussions that took place in parliament regarding the Corona rules for the autumn, the FDP advocated for the elimination of the mask requirement that was placed on the machines.

According to a recent draft that was made available to the dpa, it is now being considered for air traffic that the federal government will be able to impose a mask requirement for passengers and cabin crew by ordinance without the consent of the Bundesrat. This is something that can be seen in the current draft. FFP2 masks, sometimes referred to as more straightforward surgical masks.

The airline industry has been vocal in its opposition to the need that passengers wear masks while in flight for a significant amount of time, arguing that the rule is no longer enforced in other nations or daily settings.

On Thursday, the Bundestag will vote on whether or not to accept the corona restrictions that are included in the Infection Protection Act for the autumn. In principle, the draft that the cabinet had begun working on allows for more stringent regulations on masks and testing from October 1, 2022, all the way up to April 7, 2023.

In urgent circumstances, the federal states need to have the authority to impose additional protective measures and to increase the scope of such requirements. Lauterbach stated that the team would be ready for the fall in a confident manner. He made reference to the legal foundation, newly developed vaccinations, highly effective medications, and a more comprehensive understanding of the epidemic.

The notion of Lauterbach and Minister of Justice Marco Buschmann (FDP) initially indicated that FFP2 masks should typically be obligatory there – and that simpler surgical masks are no longer conceivable as they were in the past. This applied to aircraft as well as long-distance trains. In addition to this, same principle ought to be applied to long-distance trains.

The ability of the federal states to set the regulations for wearing masks on buses and trains used for local transportation should be preserved. The federal states had also been permitted to stipulate this for medical practices up to this point; however, the mask requirement will now now be explicitly controlled by federal law for the federal states.