By Alec Go
President Ferdinand R. Marcos has allowed the voluntary wearing of face masks in indoor areas through Executive Order (EO) No. 7 signed on Friday, Oct. 28, as the country further eases restrictions to recover from the pandemic.
This came more than a month after the government allowed voluntary face mask use in outdoor areas in September.
Based on EO No. 7, the voluntary wearing of masks still does not cover health care facilities like clinics, hospitals, laboratories, nursing homes, and dialysis clinics, as well as public transportation and medical transport vehicles.
Elderlies, persons with comorbidities and immunocompromised, pregnant women, unvaccinated individuals, and symptomatic individuals are encouraged to continue wearing masks.
Moreover, minimum public health standards will continue to be implemented nationwide.
The new policy is effective upon publication in the Official Gazette or newspaper of general circulation.
Earlier this week, Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco said the mask mandate was tackled in the Cabinet meeting on October 25.
“Generally, the direction of the Marcos administration is to lift the remainder of travel restrictions into the Philippines, and that includes easing of our mask mandates to allow our country to be at par with our ASEAN neighbors who have long liberalized their mask mandates,” she said in a Palace briefing.
