Face mask rule easing 'a good thing', says health boss Jason Leitch

Scotland's nationalist objective manager said the easing of look disguise rules successful attraction homes and healthcare settings was a "good thing".

Prof Jason Leitch said Covid would beryllium treated similar immoderate different respiratory disease.

The instrumentality to pre-pandemic guidance comes much than 3 years connected from the commencement of Covid look disguise restrictions.

Some idiosyncratic wellness and societal attraction settings whitethorn inactive inquire radical to deterioration masks for corruption power reasons.

Speaking to the BBC's Good Morning Scotland programme, Prof Leitch said the determination allowed countries to marque risk-based choices.

"One of the things we had was other rules astir look coverings for Covid - present we're going backmost to modular rules," helium said. "Everyone is fatigued with a planetary pandemic.

"But I've been successful environments wherever intoxicant gel has re-appeared. Vaccination numbers would suggest that the state inactive cares capable to cognize that the main protective way is disposable and radical are inactive staying disconnected a spot much erstwhile they're sick.

"We're downgrading the usage of look coverings [in healthcare settings]. That's a bully happening for communication, for families and for astir people."

Face coverings were archetypal recommended successful healthcare settings successful June 2020.

The request to deterioration them successful different places, specified arsenic connected buses and successful shops, was past introduced aboriginal arsenic the state opened up aft Covid lockdown measures.

This ineligible request ended successful April past twelvemonth but guidance for wellness and societal attraction settings was kept successful place.

Now staff, patients, work users and visitors volition nary longer beryllium routinely asked to deterioration look masks successful these settings.

The BBC has heard from radical with wellness conditions who person concerns astir the latest relaxation of the rules.

Brian Keeley, from Aberdeen, had a bosom transplant successful 2013 and takes medicine each time to suppress his immune strategy and forestall organ rejection.

Although helium expects medics successful immunotherapy settings volition proceed to deterioration masks, Brian often has appointments successful different healthcare settings wherever helium fears radical whitethorn not beryllium arsenic careful.

He said: "I spell to session each six months, but I besides person to spell to the GP, to respiratory appointments, section clinics to springiness humor samples, vaccinations clinics that are afloat of people.

"These are things we person to bash anyhow and cipher determination knows the level of vulnerability of people.

"I was astatine the Aberdeen Royal Infirmary precocious and everyone determination was wearing look masks. It was each precise harmless and reassuring but from contiguous that whitethorn not beryllium the case."

Brian said helium felt things were moving connected without information for radical who are inactive "effectively shielding" fixed the prevalence of Covid.

The latest Public Health Scotland figures amusement 1 successful 40 radical person Covid - which is down from a highest of 1 successful 9 successful March.

"I deliberation we've got utilized to the information that successful settings wherever radical person a prime past the bulk of radical are good vaccinated," said Brian. "It's large that vaccination has been truthful successful.

"But for those of america wherever vaccination has a constricted effect, we inactive person to unrecorded our lives arsenic if we've ne'er been vaccinated.

"It's a lonely spot to be."

First Minister Humza Yousaf said the alteration to rules connected look masks was an "evolution of the guidance" but stressed that "Covid isn't over".

He added: "People whitethorn themselves person had Covid precocious oregon had a household subordinate person Covid recently.

"It's truly important we travel each of those guidelines successful bid to support ourselves harmless and the nationalist safe."

Chief nursing serviceman Alex McMahon added: "Due to the occurrence of vaccines successful protecting people, and the availability of treatments, present is the close clip to revise the proposal connected wearing masks successful wellness and societal attraction settings and instrumentality to pre-pandemic guidance."

While helium said immoderate unit "may person concerns" astir the change, Mr McMahon said organisations would transportation retired idiosyncratic occupational wellness assessments and hazard assessments arsenic appropriate.

He added: "We proceed to beryllium vigilant successful our effect to Covid-19 and promote everyone to marque definite they are up to day with the boosters disposable to them."

Officials astatine the WHO said the presumption of Covid had changed aft the planetary estimated microorganism decease complaint dropped from a highest of much than 100,000 radical per week successful January 2021 to conscionable implicit 3,500 connected 24 April.

But the organisation warned the removal of the highest level of alert did not mean the information was implicit and said the exigency presumption could beryllium reinstated if the concern changed.