President Ferdinand Marcos signed Executive Order No. 7 allowing voluntary wearing of face masks outdoors and indoors, with some exceptions, on Friday.

Face masks will still be worn when one rides public transport or even one is in medical facilities and hospitals.

The executive order "encouraged" mask wearing for elderly, individuals with comorbidities, immunocompromised individuals, pregnant women, unvaccinated individuals, and symptomatic individuals.

Marcos said he signed the executive order due to the government's continued immunization drive, which led to 73.5 million individuals to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as of Oct. 26 and the "liberalization" of mask wearing mandate abroad. DMS