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Some Media Reports Say the U.K. Has Issued a COVID Warning Against Spain. This Is Not True

COVID cases have increased in Spain, but there's no reason for alarm.

The national government in Spain has introduced a mask mandate in healthcare centers around the country, as Covid-19 and flu infections spike. The mandate includes healthcare centers such as hospitals, doctor’s offices, and dentists. The health ministry’s mandate covers all of Spain, following similar rules implemented by several of the country’s autonomous regional governments. The health ministry’s mandate can be rescinded by regional governments at their option after two weeks if infections fall. 

Some publications in Europe have reported that the health warning for travelers has changed as a result of the limited mask mandate. It’s worth noting that the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO, also known as the “Foreign Office”), has noted Spain’s mask mandate in health centers, but has not otherwise issued a warning or caution for Britons intending to travel to Spain, in spite of what some media reports have suggested. The Foreign Office  generally does not advise against travel to a country for COVID-19 reasons except in extraordinary situations, such as local healthcare infrastructure being so overwhelmed that it is unlikely British travelers would be able to receive medical care. 

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The U.S. State Department has not revised its Travel Advisory for Spain since July 2023. The State Department currently rates Spain Level 2 – Exercise Increased Caution for threats of terrorism and civil unrest. The State Department’s country information pages on Spain do not note anything extraordinary about Spain’s current health infrastructure or increased threats from respiratory conditions.

Global tracking of COVID-19 infections has become less available since early 2023. Johns Hopkins University, which tracked global infections since the pandemic’s earliest days, stopped updating their data on COVID-19 infections and deaths by country in March 2023; many media outlets, including The New York Times, which republished the data, also stopped extensive reporting on COVID-19 cases by country at that time. 

Spain’s health ministry has also not issued a broader public health alert regarding the spike in COVID-19 and flu infections, although it’s worth noting that health alerts are typically reserved for newly identified threats not previously existing, while COVID-19 and flu are generally considered endemic seasonal infections. 

The U.K.’s Foreign Office advises that the Spanish national government and the regional autonomous governments do not require those testing positive for COVID-19 to self-isolate, but notes that hotels and other accommodation providers may have their own protocols. Spain, like the rest of the European Union’s Schengen Area, has also dropped requirements for travelers to demonstrate they have received a COVID-19 vaccine. 

The mask mandate has not been widely reported in Spanish media. A brief check of two major Spanish newspapers—El País and El Mundo—found no coverage dedicated to the limited mask mandate. Most health coverage in either publication was devoted to typical health topics, suggesting that the mask mandate for health providers no longer registers as an extraordinary occurrence. 

Flu, COVID-19, and Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) cases spiked in both Europe and the United States over the holidays, with many European countries noting an increase in flu cases turning to pneumonia, a more serious respiratory condition with a longer recovery window. In Spain, the health facility mask mandate was first implemented by the autonomous regional governments in Catalonia, Valencia, and Murcia—all Mediterranean regions popular with visitors—before being extended at the national level. 

Reuters notes that Spain was one of the last countries to drop mask mandates, requiring them to be worn on public transportation until February 2023 and in health centers, hospitals, doctor’s offices, and pharmacies until July 2023.