After more than 27 months, the government mask mandate, introduced in Oct. 2020, has been downgraded to a recommendation. Masks are no longer mandatory in schools, preschools, or daycare centers, nor in senior centers, gyms, or swimming pools. As the COVID-19 winter resurgence has peaked and begun to decline and the numbers of severe illness and death have stabilized, masks have become a matter of personal choice rather
than regulation. However, indoor masking is still required in healthcare facilities, pharmacies, and public transportation as well as among vulnerable populations. While the indoor and outdoor mask mandate has been lifted in principle, some confusion is inevitable as the requirement remains in some places. According to the epidemic prevention authorities’ new "Guidelines for Wearing Masks," people are not required to wear masks in supermarkets, department stores, and shopping malls, but they are required to do so in pharmacies located inside supermarkets. On the other hand, hospitals and facilities with vulnerable people are spaces where masks must be worn in principle along with gyms and locker rooms in such institutions. However, if you are in a single patient room in a hospital or a private area of a residential infectious disease facility, you are exempt from fines and can remove your mask. Masks are not required in kindergartens, schools, and academies, but must be worn in public transportation vehicles. In addition, local governments may add additional targets for fines for not wearing a mask indoors, so it is necessary to check the facilities where indoor masks are required to be worn in different areas. Other countries have also made changes to their
masking policies.
In Mar. 2022, the United States lifted its mask mandate, and many other countries followed suit. Canada and France did so in March, followed by Spain and Turkey in April. The Japanese government has decided to make wearing masks indoors and outdoors voluntary starting in February, and people will no longer be required to wear masks on highway buses and Shinkansen bullet trains. Masks will be required on trains and buses during peak commuting hours when people have symptoms of COVID-19 or a confirmed case in the household and when visiting medical institutions or facilities for the elderly. Schools will not require masks from April this year.
Sweden, however, has had no mask policy in place for all three years of the COVID-19 outbreak. But when it comes to excess mortality, a metric that allows for clear comparisons between countries, Sweden has the lowest excess mortality rate in Europe at 5%. This means that total mortality in Sweden during the pandemic was only 5% higher than the average total mortality rate over the previous five years. 
In Korea’s case, despite being one of the most mask-wearing countries in the world, it had the highest number of cases in the world during the Omicron wave, making it a prime example of how masks do not prevent community transmission of COVID-19. Sweden’s decision not to mandate masks was based on the results of randomized controlled trials, a research method that randomly divides study participants into two groups to evaluate the effectiveness of an intervention in a real-world setting rather than a laboratory. Of a total of 14 randomized controlled trials, all 14 showed no statistically significant difference
between the masked and unmasked groups, so Sweden stuck with its no-mask-mandate policy. For various reasons, such as consideration of overseas cases and the current domestic situation, Korea has lifted its indoor mask mandate. This has changed life in the country in various ways. Demand for beauty products, such as skin care and cosmetics products, has been especially strong since the indoor mask mandate was lifted, with people going out more and no longer able to hide their faces under masks. In addition, analysis shows that women who had been skipping their skin and lip makeup routines due to masks have increased their demand for related products since the indoor mask mandate was lifted. Sales of beauty products for men have increased as well with men’s interest in such products having increased with the removal of masks.
However, even though the indoor mask mandate has been lifted, many people are still wearing masks. In a survey of 1,567 part-time workers on the job search portal “Alba Heaven,” 89.6% of respondents said they would wear a mask even if they were no longer required to. When asked about their perception of masking, 80.6% expressed a positive sentiment. Hygiene was the top reason cited for wearing a mask. Putting customers at ease
and not getting into unnecessary arguments with them about whether to wear a mask, even though it's no longer mandatory, was the second most popular reason. As this shows, some people are still wearing masks due to their occupation, while others are not, given that fewer and fewer people are now wearing them. 
Although the indoor mask mandate has been relaxed, students in schools and the public are still wearing masks. As the need for masks and awareness of COVID-19 remain, it is recommended that a gradual, long-term approach be taken to lifting indoor masks and returning to pre-COVID-19 life. It is expected that life at schools will also be somewhat freer after the removal of the mask mandate, and students will be able to return to the campus life they enjoyed before the outbreak of COVID-19.

Lee Yeon-Jae
Reporters

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