Taiwan plans to relax face mask rules; Level 2 alert to be kept
ROC Central News Agency
10/01/2021 06:51 PM
Taipei, Oct. 1 (CNA) Taiwan will announce Sunday a relaxation of the mandatory wearing of face masks because of the low number of domestic cases, but the ongoing Level 2 COVID-19 alert will be extended, Health Minister Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) said Friday.
The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) is thinking about easing rules requiring people to wear a face mask when outside their residence, mainly for outdoor spaces where there are few people, Chen said at the CECC's daily COVID-19 press briefing.
Several government agencies have relayed to the CECC complaints from people about having to wear face masks when there is only one or a handful of people around, such as a farmer working in a field or a family on a hiking trip, Chen said.
Since Taiwan only reported an average of two locally transmitted cases per day in September, the CECC will likely relax the rules for mask-wearing in empty outdoor spaces and will announce them Sunday, he said.
Chen said the main considerations for easing the rules for wearing masks outdoors are how well the flow of people is controlled in a certain area and how well ventilated it is.
Face masks were first required to be used on public transportation in April 2020, but then became mandatory outside people's residence when Taiwan raised the COVID-19 alert level to Level 3 in mid-May 2021 amid a spike of locally transmitted cases.
Taiwan moved to a Level 2 alert on July 27, and exceptions to the face mask requirements have been announced since, such as when having a meal or driving alone or with family members in a car.
The CECC also gradually eased other restrictions to prevent the spread of COVID-19 under the current Level 2 alert, such as raising the caps on people at indoor and outdoor events, and allowing KTV parlors to reopen on Oct. 5.
Chen said, however, that the current Level 2 alert, which has been extended by two weeks four times will still be in place on Oct. 4, when the latest extension was set to expire.
(By Chang Ming-hsuan, Chiang Hui-chun and Kay Liu)
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