The wave of infections is rolling, but the obligation to wear a mouth and nose mask does not apply everywhere. Three federal states are abolishing the mask requirement in local public transport. A look at the map of Germany shows where the corona protection measure is no longer applicable – and how the number of cases is developing there.

The corona crisis seems to be over, the number of new infections at the beginning of winter 2022/23 is no longer rising as steeply as in the two previous years – at least so far. State politicians in Saxony-Anhalt, Bavaria and Schleswig-Holstein are taking the development as an opportunity to lift one of the simplest protective measures to contain the coronavirus pandemic.

In local public transport (ÖPNV) in the two federal states of Saxony-Anhalt and Bavaria, the obligation to wear a mouth and nose cover was dropped at the beginning of December. In buses and trains, passengers can thus do without the previously mandatory protective measure. Wearing a mask is now voluntary there and no longer required by law. The state government in Schleswig-Holstein wants to follow at the end of the year.

The ntv.de Germany map provides an overview of the mask requirement in local transport and shows the current development of the seven-day incidence in the federal states:

(click on map for more info)

Three federal states are thus presenting themselves as pioneers in the relaxation of corona. In Saxony-Anhalt, the new regulation, which deviates from the nationwide uniform regulations, came into force on December 7th. The Free State of Bavaria followed suit on December 10th. The infection protection ordinance in force there was extended by a cabinet decision, and the obligation to wear a mask in local transport was removed at the same time.

This means that a long-established corona requirement in three of the 16 federal states is no longer applicable. “We are continuously moving towards normality,” said Prime Minister Daniel Günther. At the same time, the CDU politician made a recommendation to wear a mask for people who themselves belong to the risk groups who are in close contact with risk groups and for people with cold symptoms.

Masks in local transport have so far been an integral part of everyday life for millions of commuters in Germany: in Bavaria, for example, the mask requirement came into force in April 2020. Similar regulations have so far applied nationwide. Due to the easing in the three federal states mentioned, there are regionally different requirements in the Corona regulations.

Critics speak of a “patchwork quilt”. In the other parts of Germany, health politicians want to stick to the mask requirement in local transport – partly because it is not yet foreseeable how the corona situation will develop in the third pandemic winter. The number of corona cases is currently increasing again in the majority of the federal states. In addition, medical practices and clinics are currently under massive strain from an unusually strong wave of seasonal infectious diseases.

The obligation to wear a mask is “no longer proportionate,” said Bavaria. The corona virus no longer accounts for the main part of viral diseases, explained Bavaria’s Health Minister Klaus Holetschek. The decision of the CSU-led state government in Munich. Influenza and RS virus would have much higher proportions of the sick in hospitals.

“The infection situation has been stable for a long time,” argued Bavaria’s Prime Minister Markus Söder with a view to the corona situation. Saxony-Anhalt’s Prime Minister Reiner Haseloff from the CDU also referred to the vaccination rate and the immunization of the population.

The lifting of the mask requirement does not mean that mouth and nose masks will disappear from the street scene. Only the obligation anchored in the Corona Ordinance was lifted in the three federal states. Instead, an appeal is made to the personal responsibility of the citizens. The state government is calling for people to wear a mask voluntarily.

Well-fitting FFP2 masks not only protect against corona viruses and rhinoviruses, which cause simple but annoying colds, but also effectively against infections with more dangerous infectious diseases such as influenza (flu) or the RS virus. In long-distance transport, which is the responsibility of the federal government, the legal obligation to wear a mouth and nose cover continues to apply.

Note: This post was updated after the decision in Schleswig-Holstein.