Health will implement mandatory masks in hospitals and health centers on Wednesday

MADRID, 8 Ene. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The Ministry of Health will implement the mandatory use of masks in hospitals and health centers next Wednesday, after failing to reach an agreement with autonomous communities, at the meeting of the Interterritorial Council of the National Health System (CISNS), on the mandatory nature. of their use of the mask in health centers, residences and pharmacies in the face of the rebound in respiratory virus infections.

Sources from the department headed by Mónica García have confirmed to Europa Press that this measure is taken in compliance with article 65 of the law on cohesion and quality of the National Health System, which allows the declaration of coordinated actions in public health.

The same sources have specified that the measure is taken only for hospitals and health centers, not in social health centers or pharmacies, as was included in the proposal presented at the interterritorial council.

Given the lack of agreement at the morning meeting, Health has opened a period for allegations by which, in the next 48 hours, the Autonomous Communities will be able to submit their proposals to the document presented by the Ministry, such as extending this measure to the pharmacies.

"After the pandemic suffered, we have learned and we are not resigned to the pre-pandemic figures. From this Ministry, we will continue working to minimize the risks and homogenize health protection," García insisted in statements to the media, once the meeting is over.

García has defended that it is an "effective, common sense rule, supported by scientific evidence and that is well received by the population."

Although last Friday Catalonia, the Valencian Community and Murcia announced the implementation of the mandatory use of masks in these centers, other Autonomous Communities have shown their opposition to this measure, since they prefer not to go beyond the recommendation. On the other hand, Aragón, which announced it was mandatory only for healthcare personnel, has also expanded its use to patients in waiting rooms.

In this sense, Health has also raised during this morning's meeting the need to provide "legal support", through a declaration of coordinated action, to all those communities "of different political colors" that have already introduced the mask in their health systems.

Among the communities that position themselves against it, Castilla y León stands out. His Health Minister, Alejandro Vázquez, has also highlighted that the call for this meeting "arrives late." However, he has defended that the community has had winter contingency plans for years to deal with the increase in cases of respiratory pathologies.

For his part, the Minister of Health of the Government of Aragon, José Luis Bancalero, has assured that masks will continue to be mandatory to "protect vulnerable people" until such time as the incidence allows for de-escalation.

However, he agrees with his counterpart from Castilla y León in his criticism of this Monday's meeting. For the counselor, he has been a "truly disappointing, inappropriate and unnecessary" CISNS, because a feeling of alert has been created in the population that "did not correspond to reality." According to Bancalero, he has generated "discomfort" and "rejection" among all autonomous communities, "of all colors."

Madrid will maintain the recommendation to use a mask in the cases contemplated since the end of the pandemic in July 2023, that is, in the event of symptoms and for especially vulnerable people, and has criticized the fact that the Ministry of Health has advanced the proposals and measures that have led to the meeting of the Interterritorial Council of the National Health System (CISNS) "through unofficial channels."

In statements to the media after the meeting, the Madrid Minister of Health, Fátima Matute, stressed that "all Health Ministers, except Catalonia", have agreed in recommending the use of masks "responsibly" in the cases that already They have been indicated since the end of the pandemic in July 2023.

Likewise, the Basque Country has also criticized the lack of technical criteria of the meeting. Furthermore, he has claimed that any proposal presented "should respect the powers of the Basque Country in matters of Health" and be "endorsed" by the Alerts Report and the Public Health Commission.

In a statement, the Basque Executive has indicated after the meeting of the Interterritorial Council that the Basque Country "does not share, like a large part of the rest of the Autonomous Communities, neither the form, nor part of the content, of the call that the Ministry of Health has carried out by the Interterritorial Council of the National Health System".

The Minister of Health of La Rioja, María Martín, has stated that the obligation to wear a mask in "vulnerable" spaces, such as health centers, pharmacies, residences or schools, should depend on the incidence of respiratory diseases, although she sees it " recommendable".

In statements to the media, Martín pointed out, as a first assessment of the meeting, that "a generalized anger has been perceived" among all communities, "of all political colors."

A displeasure that, first of all, has been due to the haste of the call, "which was made on Friday afternoon", and without the necessary documents "until a quarter to 10 today, when we were already meeting", and which, in any case, is a meeting "that is already late".

And, secondly, due to the use of the word "collapse" by the minister, "because not a single one of the CCAA present has recognized that there had been a collapse in the corresponding regional health system", which has made it ugly that "it leads to unnecessary alarm and is neither real nor true."

For her part, the Minister of Health and Consumer Affairs of the Government of Andalusia, Catalina García, has also shown her dissatisfaction with the meeting. In her opinion, these decisions should be made first in the Alert Presentation and in the Public Health Commission, where a document is prepared establishing levels of alerts or indicators, among others, to later be endorsed in the Council Interterritorial.

For this reason, Andalusia has voted against the proposed document "because it lacks technical rigor", as stated by the Ministry in a press release.

Along the same lines, the Minister of Health of Galicia, Julio García Comesaña, sees as "disproportionate" the intention that Health had to make the mask mandatory in health centers, residences and pharmacies, although he does not oppose its application in communities "that they need it." Like his counterparts, he has demanded that any measure in this regard be based on "technical criteria."

"The practically unanimity of the councilors have criticized the minister for the attempt to use the CISNS as if it were her Twitter account or a banner for a demonstration," proclaimed García Comesaña, who has criticized the "hasty" nature of the call. and the fact that García announced the topics to be addressed "outside" the body itself and without first convening either the Alerts Presentation or the Public Health Commission.

On the other hand, the Balearic Islands does not rule out imposing the mandatory use of masks in hospitals and health centers if the incidence of respiratory viruses experiences growth in the coming days or weeks, although for the moment it remains in the recommendation of its use, while Navarra It is recommended to use it in health and social care centers and for those people with respiratory symptoms, especially if they are in closed places.