Bill 7645 updates essential details in the July covid law, extending its pandemic measures from 30 September to 31 December.

Among the key changes will be the status of visors, which parliament describes as “not a substitute for wearing a mask because they do not have the same function from a medical point of view (to prevent the spread of droplets from the nose and mouth).”

It means anyone wearing a visor in a place where a face covering is compulsory in Luxembourg, such as in a restaurant, could be fined.

The wearing of a mask will not be enforced for people with disabilities or conditions that prevent masks from being worn (to be proven by a medical certificate).

The draft law clarifies the rules on storing personal data related to covid-19. This data can be kept up to three months after the end of the period covered by the law and should be kept in a pseudonymised manner (not anonymised) to enable health authorities to be able to analyse possible cases of reinfection.

Airlines, meanwhile, should automatically transfer forms completed by passengers on an aircraft to the health authorities in order to facilitate the tracing of contacts if a passenger tests positive. This mechanism should also apply to coach trips. According to parliament, this data is currently already transferred to the Health Directorate, but only at its request, a system which may be too slow to guarantee an efficient tracing of positive cases, health minister Paulette Lenert (LSAP) explained to the health commission on Tuesday.

The bill also outlines recruitment guidelines for health professionals, beyond doctors, saying that psychotherapists and pharmacists may also be hired by the state on fixed-term contracts to help fight against the pandemic.