The Government is thinking about an extension beyond six months of the expiry of the green pass for those who have made the booster (third dose). And on the table there are also the knots of the shorter duration of the certificate compared to 9 months in other European countries and of the obligation to swab for those arriving in Italy, even with the third dose: a cry of alarm has come from the Regions for the repercussions on tourism. To partially unblock the situation could be a recommendation that on Tuesday will land on the table of the EU Regional Affairs Council: people with full vaccination, cured of the disease or with a negative test, will not be able to be imposed new tampons or quarantines, regardless of the situation. epidemiology of their country of origin, we read in a draft of the document. And the pass is valid for 9 months.
Duration of the green pass reduced to six months from February 1st
From 1 February the duration of the green certificate will decrease from 9 to 6 months (after a first cut from 12 to 9 months on 15 December 2021). Calculating that the administration of the booster started in mid-September, in mid-March there will be the first Italians with the expired pass despite having done three doses and there is, at the moment, no indication regarding a possible fourth dose. The problem is clearly present to the ministers concerned who are “evaluating solutions”. At the moment half of the country’s population (30 million people) has done the booster. There is still a few weeks for a decision; the hypothesis could be to eliminate the deadline for “trivaccinates”.
The “trap” of six months also impacts on arrivals from countries that have longer-term passes (the EU has established 9 months). The problem was raised in the Conference of the Regions by the President of the Province of Trento, Maurizio Fugatti, who asked for an intervention “in a very short time” from the Government to save the winter tourist season, ensuring the validity of foreign passes beyond the six months provided for by the Italian standards. The Minister of Tourism, Massimo Garavaglia, has taken action in this direction with his colleague Roberto Speranza (Health), but at the moment the knot is not resolved.
Node buffer obligation for those coming from abroad
Another issue to be resolved is that of the obligation to take a swab for those arriving from abroad. The ordinance of the Ministry of Health that provides for this expires on January 31 and if it is not renewed in the next few days from February 1, it will cease to be in force. The prescription is also valid for those who have the green pass or have received the booster. The discussion is open, we will see if the position of those who ask to expire the ordinance to give breath to tourism will prevail. The new EU recommendation could indicate a way out.
From January 24, five regions in orange
Meanwhile, from Monday 24 January the regions in orange have risen to five: the Valle d’Aosta has been joined by Abruzzo, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Piedmont and Sicily, for a total of 11.7 million people. For the vaccinated it will change little. They can do the same things they do in the white and orange zone.