People queue to enter a store in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, on Dec. 18, 2021. (Photo by Sylvia Lederer/Xinhua)
On March 23, the face mask mandate on public transportation will disappear along with the testing requirement at events with more than 500 patrons.
THE HAGUE, March 15 (Xinhua) -- Two years after announcing the country's first COVID-19 lockdown, the Dutch government abolished the last mandatory measures against the spread of coronavirus on Tuesday.
Ernst Kuipers, the country's minister of health, welfare and sport, said that on March 23, the face mask mandate on public transportation will disappear along with the testing requirement at events with more than 500 patrons.
One month ago, Kuipers already said that the Netherlands was "returning to normal" as the authorities lifted most of the health measures.
"In recent weeks, coronavirus infection rates have once again increased, but the current variant is making people less ill and the number of people being admitted to intensive care is limited," Kuipers said on Tuesday.
People visit the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, Feb. 18, 2022. (Photo by Sylvia Lederer/Xinhua)
"So, the government has decided to further ease the current measures."
However, certain recommendations remain in force. People with symptoms should stay at home and do a self-test. If the result is positive, they should remain in isolation for at least five days. People should also wash their hands regularly and should cough and sneeze into their elbow.
In its weekly update, the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) reported on Tuesday that the number of new positive COVID-19 tests remained fairly stable compared to the previous week.
Between March 8 and March 15, the country logged 429,252 positive cases, two percent less than the week before.
"Coronavirus has not gone away," Kuipers said. "Fortunately, the vaccines are effective and a lot of people have built up resistance due to having been infected. This means that the impact of a new wave of infections will be less severe than in 2020 and 2021."
A restaurant is open for guests in Haarlem, the Netherlands, Jan. 26, 2022. (Photo by Sylvia Lederer/Xinhua)■
