Covid: Italy imposes restrictions on non-vaccinators

Rome | Unvaccinated people in Italy will not be able to go to the cinema, theatre, concerts or major sporting events, under new restrictions that took effect on Monday.

The peninsula, like its European neighbors, is facing a resurgence in coronavirus infections, and it has adopted this new package of measures to try to stop it.

The only exception to this rule: people who have recently recovered from COVID-19, who also have access to the “Super Health Card” given to vaccinated people. However, a basic health card, which can be accessed through a negative test, is sufficient to go to his workplace.

The basic health permit, required until now for boarding a plane or long-distance trains, will now also be required for local transportation (bus, metro and regional trains).

Checks began Monday morning at stations across the country and 1.3 million health cards were downloaded Sunday for the shift.

In Rome, 50 people without a permit on Monday morning were fined 400 euros for getting off a bus near Piazza del Popolo in the city’s historic center, according to the daily Il Corriere della Sera. “I didn’t have it because I wanted to get vaccinated in the next few days,” he justified himself.

This weekend, still in Rome, the obligatory mask-wearing outside went into effect in most commercial lanes, particularly frequented at the sight of Christmas cats.

Italy, the first European country hard hit by the epidemic in early 2020, has so far recorded more than 134,000 deaths. Although infections are on the rise, it is doing better than its neighbors, with between 15,000 and 20,000 new daily cases recorded in recent days.

Approximately 85% of those over 12 years of age are fully immunized, the third dose campaign is underway and vaccines will soon be available for children aged 5-11 years.

The basic health permit, introduced in August, was required to go to the cinema, theater, museum and restaurants. By October, it has become mandatory in all workplaces.

From Monday, a “Super Health Card”, which can only be obtained if a person has been vaccinated or recently recovered from Covid, will be required for all cultural activities and within restaurants.

However, the main corridor is sufficient to eat on the balcony or have a coffee at the bar.