Philippine President Considers Relaxing Entry Restrictions, Tourism Minister: Will Relax Indoor Mask Order!

According to Philippine media reports, this (25th) morning, President Xiaocos and cabinet members held a meeting to discuss the possible further relaxation of entry restrictions.

Health agreements for inbound tourists and proposals to further relax entry restrictions were discussed during the cabinet meeting, according to the press secretary's office.

Last month, the Department of Health said it was studying the possibility of recommending further easing of border restrictions.

At noon today, Tourism Minister Christina García Frasco announced at a press conference held at the presidential palace that President Marcos will issue an executive order stipulating that masks can be worn voluntarily in indoor areas.

She pointed out that the resolution was reached at the cabinet meeting in the morning.

She said: "In the cabinet meeting this morning, everyone agreed that the president issued an executive order based on the IATF's recommendation to voluntarily choose whether to wear indoor masks in various parts of the Philippines, with only a few exceptions."

At the same time, masks are still needed for public transportation, medical transportation, or medical facilities.

In addition, she still strongly recommends that people who have not been vaccinated against the new crown, people with comorbidities and the elderly wear masks.

She concluded: "In general, the government's direction is to lift the remaining travel restrictions in the Philippines, which include relaxing the mask regulations so that our country can match the ASEAN neighbors who have relaxed the mask regulations for a long time."