Covid-19: In Europe but also worldwide: this week, all regions have seen their situation improve: -41% in the US/Canada area, -30% in Africa, -26% in Latin America/Caribbean, -13% in Asia, -9% in Europe and -2% in the Middle East.
On Wednesday, February 16, 2022, Austria announced that it will no longer be necessary to show a vaccination pass at the entrance to hotels, restaurants, concerts and sporting events.
Germany, more cautious than its neighbors, is preparing to relax the restrictions introduced to contain the Covid-19 epidemic in February 2022, as health authorities consider that the worst of the Omicron wave has passed.
The phasing out is to be done in three stages, starting with an end to the measures governing meetings in private settings for people vaccinated or cured of Covid-19. The obligation to show a vaccination pass could then be partially or totally removed.
Portugal announces the end of the health pass and most restrictions
“Faced with a situation of pandemic in very significant fall, it was decided an update of the measures still in force,” said Mariana Vieira da Silva, government spokeswoman, at a press conference after a council of ministers.
When these new rules go into effect, a health pass will no longer be required to enter restaurants, tourist establishments or major events.
Displaying a complete vaccination schedule will nevertheless always be required at the Portuguese borders.
Un test négatif ne sera plus requis pour se rendre dans les bars et les boîtes de nuit, mais continuera d’être demandé pour entrer dans les maisons de retraite.
Switzerland announced on Wednesday 16 February the lifting of almost all measures to control Covid-19, with only the masking of public transport and health facilities and the isolation of patients being maintained until the end of March.
As of February 17, access to stores, restaurants, cultural institutions, establishments open to the public and events is again possible without a mask or Covid certificate, the Federal Council (government) said in a statement. The requirement for permits for large events, restrictions on private meetings, and capacity restrictions in retail outlets and ski lifts have also been lifted.
Other European countries have already put an end, hopefully definitively, to the vaccine or health pass. This is the case in Denmark, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Croatia and the Spanish region of Catalonia.
Israel ends the use of the health pass
The country was one of the first to introduce a health pass. The pass was not required for access to cafes, restaurants and sports halls, but it was required in cinemas and concert halls.
The Israeli government must also decide in the coming days on the abandonment of the requirement of a PCR test, in order to enter the country, currently open to foreign travelers, said the Prime Minister.
Japan will ease border restrictions to allow foreign students and workers into the country, but tourists will remain banned for now, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced Thursday.
