Bars and clubs reopen this Friday night, January 14, after another three-week closure due to covid-19, with customers without a booster dose of the vaccine having to present a negative test to enter.
According to the Resolution of the Council of Ministers of 6 January, bars and clubs, which have been closed since 25 December, are authorized to open on Fridays from 22 pm.
“Bars, other non-show drinking establishments and establishments with dance spaces are at stake, even if these establishments are part of tourist establishments”, according to the text of the resolution with the most recent changes to the “measures applicable in the context of the pandemic of the disease”. of covid-19”.
To enter these spaces, customers must present a negative test for covid-19, with the exception of those who “demonstrate having been vaccinated for at least 14 days with a booster dose” against the disease or who have a certificate of recovery.
PCR tests performed less than 72 hours ago, rapid tests performed less than 48 hours ago or self-test performed at entry are valid.
In the same Council of Ministers on 6 January, the Government decided to maintain the ban on the consumption of alcoholic beverages on public roads, with the exception of the “open terraces of restaurants and similar establishments duly licensed for this purpose”, as read in the published resolution. in the Republic Gazette.
As part of the containment of the covid-19 pandemic, with greater restrictions during Christmas and New Year's Eve, nightlife spaces (bars, non-show drinking establishments and establishments with a dance space) remain closed from midnight onwards. the 00th of December and the measure was expected to last until the 00th of January, but it was extended until the 25th, at 9:14.
Before the current closure, bars and clubs had reopened in October for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic in Portugal, after 19 months stopped.
Between October and December, to enter these spaces, it was necessary to present a negative antigen or PCR test or a certificate of recovery from covid-19, even in the case of vaccinated people.
On the 6th of January, the associations that represent this sector of bars and clubs expressed satisfaction with the announcement of the reopening on the 14th, although saying that it was a penalty for the bars for a few more days.
As for the nightclubs, they already expected to reopen only at the end of this week, as they are usually only open during the weekend period or the days before.
Entrepreneurs also considered the ban on drinking on the street to be “incongruous” and recalled that many bar customers consume at the door of establishments, which is even advantageous in controlling the circulation of the disease virus.
Another criticism of the businessmen is the exception of tests only for those who already have the third dose of the vaccine, given that those who frequent bars and clubs are age groups to which the booster vaccination is not yet being administered.
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