Green certificates not to be required to attend religious services

Health Minister Alexandru Rafila denied on Sunday making the green certificate mandatory in Romania for attendance of religious services or processions.

"That was not discussed at Sunday's meeting. I have publicly stated that using the green certificate for religious services was out of the question, which does not mean that we do not want support from churches to enforce the social distancing rules, the proper use of face masks and avoiding crowds where possible when services are organised. It is quite different, and I do not think it appropriate to speculate on the content of the meetings, which are by no means conflicting, but a means for debate and collaboration,"Rafila said at the Government House on Sunday, agerpres.ro informs.

The statements were made after a working meeting of Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca with the main officials responsible for the management of the COVID-19 pandemic amidst reports of the first two cases of the Omicron COVID variant in Romania.