UAE doctors urge against ‘mask complacency’, urge residents to follow COVID-19 rules

UAE doctors urge against ‘mask complacency’, urge residents to follow COVID-19 rules

Doctors across the United Arab Emirates have urged all residents to continue wearing face masks and follow other safety protocols to safeguard against the spread of COVID-19.

Their comments come a day after health officials announced it would strictly enforce its mask rule– with penalties for those flouting the protocol – and announced it would tighten its rules on the Al Hosn green pass system amid rising coronavirus cases across the country.

For more coronavirus news, visit our dedicated page.

At a televised media briefing on Monday, the UAE’s National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority (NCEMA) also said there had been cases of people infected with COVID-19 who had breached the mandatory 10-day at-home isolation period; a breach which they warned would be considered – and treated as - a criminal offense.

Across the country, health experts said it is vital that everyone followed the rules to limit the rise of new infections.Speaking to Al Arabiya English, Dr. Niyas Khalid, a specialist in internal medicine at Burjeel Medical City in Abu Dhabi, said it is essential to follow precautionary measures amid the global rise of COVID-19 cases.

Reluctance to follow rules

“People have been under the COVID-19 cloud for around three years,” he said. “Many