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Why lockdown rules aren’t always the same around Italy

As different Italian regions continue to enforce their own rules, we look at the various measures being taken, and why.

Published: 7 May 2020 10:06 CEST
Updated: 8 May 2020 10:13 CEST
Why lockdown rules aren't always the same around Italy
Soldiers and police check travellers' documents at the Milan centrale train station on May 5th. Photo: AFP

Italy has been under national lockdown for almost two months, and you might think we should all know what the rules are by now.

But instead, confusion grows with every new emergency decree issued by the government.

As Italy entered phase two of its lockdown on Monday, May 4th, many people were still unclear about some of the changes to the rules following a somewhat vague announcement by the prime minister the previous Sunday.

While many people believed phase two meant an end to the lockdown, it is in fact only a slight easing of some of the rules. Many tight restrictions still remain, and this new phase is in many ways stricter than the initial lockdowns imposed by many Western countries.

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Trying to find out what exactly had changed and what hadn't was made still harder by the fact that Italy's regional governments are adapting the national rules and bringing in their own additional measures on top.

As Italy adjusts to phase two, the staggered reopening has been complicated by the highly decentralised government system which allows the country's 20 regions to layer on their own rules.

Veneto and Calabria have thus been serving food and drink at bars and restaurants with outdoor seating since last week.
 
The area around Genoa is thinking of reopening its beaches. Neighbouring Emilia-Romagna is keeping them closed – even to those who live by the sea.
 
And fines for breaking the rules range from a maximum of 3,000 euros in most places to 5,000 in Lombardy.
 
Such regional differences in the rules have been cause for confusion throughout the lockdown.
 
As the crisis first began to unfold, Italy's national and regional governments make one new announcement after another, bringing in a raft of new laws in attempts to stop the spread of the coronavirus across the country.

The raft of new rules and regulations in each region became even more complex after a new decree in late March made it easier for regional governments to bring in their own rules.

Meanwhile, the Italian government repeatedly tightened the regulations since they were first announced on March 10th, before loosening them slightly on May 4th.

While trying to keep up with these rule changes, Italy's residents have also had to keep track of what their regional and city authorities are doing.

READ ALSO: Why the partial end of Italy's lockdown isn't as good as you'd imagine

 

Tuscany has relatively relaxed regulations under phase two, easing some restrictions further than recommended by the national government. Find the region's latest ordinance here.

Meanwhile many parts of the south, including Puglia and Molise, have imposed a mandatory 14-day quarantine rule for anyone entering the region, amid fears of an influx from the worst-hit northern areas after the national ban on travelling between regions to return home was lifted.

Lombardy, the region bearing the brunt of Italy's coronavirus emergency, has long had the toughest rules in place. Here are their latest offical updates.

Piedmont, the third-worst affected region after Emilia Romagna, has adopted many of the same measures as Lombardy. Find the region's latest ordinance here.
 
Local mayors have also been imposing extra restrictions. For example, some towns and cities have opted to keep parks closed under phase two, despite the national government allowing them to reopen.
 
Check the website of your local comune and regione for the latest updates to the quarantine rules where you are.
 

 

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HEALTH

Italy’s schools warned to ‘avoid gatherings’ as Covid cases rise

As Italy’s new school year began, masks and hand sanitiser were distributed in schools and staff were asked to prevent gatherings to help stem an increase in Covid infections.

Published: 11 September 2023 12:48 CEST
Italy’s schools warned to ‘avoid gatherings’ as Covid cases rise

Pupils returned to school in many parts of Italy on Monday and authorities said they were distributing masks and hand sanitiser amid a post-summer increase in the number of recorded cases of Covid–19.

“The advice coming from principals, teachers and janitors is to avoid gatherings of students, especially in these first days of school,” Mario Rusconi, head of Italy’s Principals’ Association, told Rai news on Monday.

He added that local authorities in many areas were distributing masks and hand sanitizer to schools who had requested them.

“The use of personal protective equipment is recommended for teachers and students who are vulnerable,” he said, confirming that “use is not mandatory.”

A previous requirement for students to wear masks in the classroom was scrapped at the beginning of the last academic year.

Walter Ricciardi, former president of the Higher Health Institute (ISS), told Italy’s La Stampa newspaper on Monday that the return to school brings the risk of increased Covid infections.

Ricciardi described the health ministry’s current guidelines for schools as “insufficient” and said they were “based on politics rather than scientific criteria.”

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Recorded cases of Covid have increased in most Italian regions over the past three weeks, along with rates of hospitalisation and admittance to intensive care, as much of the country returns to school and work following the summer holidays.

Altogether, Italy recorded 21,309 new cases in the last week, an increase of 44 percent compared to the 14,863 seen the week before.

While the World Health Organisation said in May that Covid was no longer a “global health emergency,” and doctors say currently circulating strains of the virus in Italy are not a cause for alarm, there are concerns about the impact on elderly and clinically vulnerable people with Italy’s autumn Covid booster campaign yet to begin.

“We have new variants that we are monitoring but none seem more worrying than usual,” stated Fabrizio Maggi, director of the Virology and Biosafety Laboratories Unit of the Lazzaro Spallanzani Institute for Infectious Diseases in Rome

He said “vaccination coverage and hybrid immunity can only translate into a milder disease in young and healthy people,” but added that “vaccinating the elderly and vulnerable continues to be important.”

Updated vaccines protecting against both flu and Covid are expected to arrive in Italy at the beginning of October, and the vaccination campaign will begin at the end of October, Rai reported.

Amid the increase in new cases, Italy’s health ministry last week issued a circular mandating Covid testing on arrival at hospital for patients with symptoms.

Find more information about Italy’s current Covid-19 situation and vaccination campaign on the Italian health ministry’s website (available in English).

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