RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – On April 28, Ecuadorian authorities announced the end of the requirement to wear masks throughout the country, more than two years after implementing this regulation with the onset of the covid-19 pandemic.
“I am pleased to announce that, as of today, the use of masks will no longer be mandatory in Ecuador,” said Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso in an appearance with members of the National Emergency Operations Committee (COE), the entity in charge of evaluating and managing the epidemiological situation.
The decision, in force since April 28, is valid for both open and closed spaces. The president took off his mask to stage the end of this obligation, which had been in force since April 6, 2020, when the authorities made its use mandatory throughout Ecuador.
Lasso justified the decision adopted by the authorities in the massive vaccination coverage of the Ecuadorian population and the low rates of hospitalizations due to covid-19 in the country.
1 BILLION DOLLARS IN VACCINES
The head of the Ecuadorian government assured that the program of purchase of the covid vaccines had cost US$1 billion, despite the deficit of 7% of the state budget when he came to power 11 months ago.
At the same time, Lasso thanked international cooperation, especially from countries such as China, whose vaccines represented 52% of the doses administered in the country, both sold “at very reasonable prices and others donated”.
He also referred to the United States for the donation of vaccines “in the most difficult moments” and the help offered by Spain, Canada, Argentina, Germany, Mexico, and Chile.
The latest report from the Ministry of Public Health, dated April 27, shows 869,124 reported cases of covid-19 since February 29, 2020, when the first positive case was detected in the country, a figure representing a daily increase of 157 positives.
According to official statistics, the number of deaths from the disease has risen to 35,588, including confirmed and probable cases.
After announcing the decision, the President thanked especially the work carried out by the Minister of Public Health, Ximena Garzón.
ONLY ONE DEATH IN THE LAST WEEK
The head of Health said that the epidemiological curves are down and stand at 0.09% when week 46 of the pandemic reached 1.41%.
“We have practically no covid-19 patients in hospitalization or intensive care; the previous week, one person died from covid-19 in the whole country,” she detailed.
The decision announced in Ecuador is in addition to similar measures adopted in other countries in the region that have decided to relax the use of the mask in both open and closed spaces.
Peru and Colombia decided last week to lift the mandatory use of face masks in public places, as did Mexico, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Costa Rica.
In Europe, countries such as the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Greece, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium, Ireland, Hungary, Romania, Luxembourg, Croatia, Estonia, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Austria, and Lithuania have also lifted the restrictions imposed by the governments and eliminated the mandatory use of face masks indoors.
With information from EFE
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