Face mask rules at hospitals and GPs in England have been scrapped, NHS England said today.
Following more than two years of face mask requirements because of the Covid-19 pandemic, it will now be up to individual organisations to draft their own policies.
Some GP surgeries and health centres have already taken down signs telling patients to wear masks on entry, but a number of sites have already asked patients and staff to continue to wear face coverings.
NHS England wrote a letter to all health bodies highlighting new infection control guidance set out by the UK Health Security Agency.
It suggests that most visiting rules should be reverted back to pre-pandemic policies.
Patients visiting GP surgeries or hospital outpatient appointments and people attending A&E no longer need to wear masks "unless this is a personal preference", the letter reads.
But those with respiratory symptoms - such as a cough - should wear a face mask or face covering "if tolerated".
Patients with Covid-19 or suspected Covid should be given a face mask when they are admitted to a ward or in a communal area "if this can be tolerated and it is deemed safe for the patient", the letter adds.
Covid-19 patients in single rooms will not usually be required to wear a mask, it states.
Hospital patients who do not have Covid do not need to wear a face mask unless it is their "personal preference", the letter adds.
However, patients in high-risk areas such as cancer units may be asked to wear one.
Staff are still advised to wear a mask in high-risk areas, and if they come into contact with someone who has Covid-19 they should also wear one.
The letter noted that the infection control measures introduced during the pandemic "continue to have an impact on capacity and flow".
Some hospitals have already said they will continue request that masks are worn.
Sheffield Teaching Hospitals in Yorkshire issued a notice to patients and staff saying: "We are still asking patients, visitors, staff and anyone working at one of our hospital or community sites to continue to wear a mask, gel hands and social distance while in our buildings despite the lifting of national restrictions.
"This is to keep vulnerable people as safe as possible."
A similar call came from Bradford Teaching Hospitals and Croydon Health Services.
However, Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals in Surrey have said it is now a "personal preference" to wear one.
Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has also issued a similar statement.
