that starting at noon, all bus and taxi passengers were required to wear masks; otherwise the driver would have the right to refuse boarding. starting at 13:00, all light rail passengers were required to wear a mask; otherwise the driver would have the right to refuse boarding. on 4 february 2020, all casinos in macau were ordered to shut down for 15 days. the following facilities were also required to close: cinemas, theatres, indoor amusement parks, arcades, internet cafes, pool halls, bowling alleys, steam baths, massage parlours, beauty salons, gyms, health clubs, bars, karaoke bars, nightclubs, discos, and dance clubs. on 7 february, the government of macau announced that government workers were to stay home from the 8th to the 16th, except for emergency services. on 11 february, at the daily press conference, the government announced the third face mask safeguarding plan and provided masks for children for the first time, but due to limited quantities, each child was only permitted to buy five. the government also announced that testing would begin for groups at high risk of infection, and that the highest-risk group was tour bus drivers, of which 103 were to be tested that day. on 13 february the government announced economic relief measures, including: (1) reduction of taxes and fees to relieve the burden on businesses and residents; (2) assistance to small and medium enterprises and interest subsidies, to support the continued existence of enterprises; (3) measures to enhance people's livelihoods and support vulnerable families; (4) technical training, providing work, and protecting wages; (5) putting out electronic coupons to accelerate economic recovery. the government also announced that it would cooperate with a local research team in macau to establish production lines in the mainland and safeguard the supply of face masks. on 14 february, the government announced that, after balancing epidemic prevention with citizens' need for public services, starting 17 february, basic public services would be restored. on 17 february, the government announced that effective 20 february, casinos could reopen but other entertainment facilities such as cinemas and bars were to remain closed. the government also announced that migrant workers entering macau who had been to mainland china in the past 14 days would need to undergo 14 days of medical observation at a designated location in zhuhai. at a press conference, the secretary for economy and finance lei wai nong (李偉農) mentioned that when casinos reopened, they would have to follow government measures in order to protect employee and guest safety. if casinos were unable to prepare adequately for reopening, they could apply to delay reopening for up to 30 days. on 18 february, due to the global face mask shortage, the government began providing masks with ties instead of ear straps. on 19 february, the government announced that effective 20 february, passengers coming from covid-19 hotspots would need to undergo medical checks upon entering macau. medical checks might also be conducted on macau residents who made multiple trips back and forth to zhuhai every day. it was also announced that some parks would reopen and government broadcasts would be adjusted. all casinos reopened on 20 february 2020, but visitor numbers remained low due to the pandemic, with hotels at less than 12% occupancy at the end of february. macau's casinos suffered a year-on-year revenue drop of 88% during february 2020, the worst ever recorded. starting on 20 february, the government of macau restricted entry from mainland china. on 21 february, the government announced that the following week, 24–28 february, the public sector would still provide basic services. the fourth face mask safeguarding plan would begin the following day, 22 february. on 25 february, the health bureau announced that people entering macau who had been to south korea in the past 14 days would be required to undergo 14 days of medical observation. the maritime and water bureau announced that the opening hours of the outer harbour ferry terminal and taipa ferry terminal would be changed to 07:00–20:00 until further notice. on 27 february, the other venues that had been closed on 5 february along with the casinos were permitted to reopen. however, the government of macau recommended that they implement epidemic control measures; if an outbreak occurred in such a place, they would require site control measures in accordance with article 19 of the infectious disease prevention law. the government of macau announced that effective 2 march, public services would return to normal. private tutoring and continuing education institutions that meet health guidelines could also resume operations. the education bureau announced that, subject to the conditions that macau and guangdong province had no new confirmed cases for 14 consecutive days and macau schools did not resume classes before zhuhai and zhongshan, it would be possible to announce the resumption of classes at non-tertiary schools. the correctional services authority announced that visiting services would partially resume on 4 march. on 29 february, it was announced that passengers who had been to italy or iran in the past 14 days would need to undergo 14 days of medical observation in isolation. macau residents would be permitted to undergo medical observation at a home location deemed appropriate by authorities. march 2020 on 2 march, many branches of the macao public library reopened (with certain areas such as the multimedia rooms and children's reading areas remaining closed), and with the buildings receiving twice-daily "cleaning and disinfection periods". on 8 march, it was announced that starting at noon the same day, people entering macau who had been to germany, france, spain, or japan in the past 14 days would need to undergo a health check. in addition, starting 10 march at noon, passengers coming from those locations would need to undergo 14 days of isolation and medical observation at a designated location. macau residents would be permitted to undergo medical observation at an approved home location. the tertiary education bureau announced measures to help students from macau studying abroad to purchase face masks. on 9 march, the sports bureau announced that sports facilities under its authority had gradually resumed opening starting 2 march, and that other facilities would be able to gradually resume opening starting 11 march. these facilities had been closed since 24 january. the blood donation centre announced the suspension of blood donation by at-risk individuals for 28 days. on 13 march, the education and youth affairs bureau announced a contingency plan for resuming classes in stages, with different grades gradually going back to school on different dates from 30 march and 4 may. on 14 march, it was announced that people entering macau who had been to the covid-19 hotspots of the schengen area, the united kingdom, the united states, canada, russia, brazil, egypt, australia, or new zealand in the past 14 days would be required to undergo medical observation at a designated location. the tertiary education bureau announced that some classes meeting certain conditions would be allowed to resume on 1 april. in addition, it was announced that students returning to macau from abroad would have to undergo 14 days of medical observation at home and a nucleic acid test. on 15 march, it was announced that new zealand is not considered a covid-19 hotspot. the tourism bureau announced that from 17 march to 22 march the government would arrange transportation from hong kong international airport for macau residents and students coming from european countries to bring them to a designated location for 14 days of medical observation. on 16 march, it was announced that starting 17 march at midnight (00:00), people arriving in macau from any countries outside china (meaning mainland china, hong kong, macau, and taiwan) would have to undergo 14 days of medical observation at a designated location. the tourism bureau announced that transportation from hong kong international airport to a designated location would be arranged for macau residents and students coming from the united states as well as european countries. effective 18 march, the government banned entry of all non-residents, with exceptions for mainland china, hong kong, and taiwan. on 18 march, the tourism bureau announced that from 19 march to 31 march, transportation from hong kong international airport would take macau residents and students coming from all countries to designated locations for medical observation. on 19 march, the plan for resuming classes in stages was cancelled. on 24 march, the chief executive announced that starting 25 march, connecting flights would no longer be permitted at macau international airport; any residents of hong kong, taiwan, or mainland china who had been to other countries in the previous 14 days were prohibited from entering macau; and macau residents who had been to hong kong, taiwan, or other countries in the past 14 days would be required to undergo 14 days of medical observation at a designated location. on 25 march, the health bureau expanded restrictions on blood donations. april 2020 on 4 april, the government of macau followed the chinese central government in holding a day of mourning throughout macau. chinese flags and macau flags were to be flown at half mast, and public entertainment and celebrations or festive events were to stop. starting at 10 am that day, macau would observe a three-minute moment of silence. effective 6 april, the government suspended bus links over the hong kong–zhuhai–macau bridge, only allowing dual licence (hk/macau) and freight vehicles to use the bridge. on 8 april, the secretary for economy and finance announced that 10 billion patacas would be put into an anti-epidemic assistance fund to help residents and businesses. on 20 april, the education and youth affairs bureau introduced a child mask plan to provide masks to children starting school. on 25 april, the education and youth affairs bureau announced a testing plan for non-tertiary teachers and cross-border students, starting with testing 5,000 secondary school teachers. on 28 april, the marine and water bureau announced that starting april 29 at midnight (00:00), fishers returning to macau would need to quarantine for 14 days on the fishing boat or at a hotel. fishers who had already returned to macau would be tested. may 2020 on 1 may, the health bureau introduced the macau health code, which was to start being used on may 3 at 9:00. the health code is an upgraded version of a personal health declaration, which would replace the health declarations being used at border crossings. for the time being, it would only apply to entering macau and entering local places. on 2 may, it was agreed to resume regular hours of operation at portas do cerco and the hong kong–zhuhai–macau bridge. 2021 on 21 january, the health bureau announced a new imported case, ending macau's streak of 200 days without a single covid-19 case. the case was a 43-year-old female who had been to dubai, singapore, and tokyo. she was asymptomatic. on 16 may, the novel coronavirus response and coordination centre confirmed a new case of imported infection, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 50. on 24 may, macau confirmed its 51st case of covid-19; it was later announced on 26 may that the patient carried the delta variant, making it the first case of the variant in the city. on 5 august, macau authorities ordered entertainment and leisure venues (except casinos) closed after four local family members were infected with the delta variant. the cluster of local cases was the territory's first in over a year. after a mandatory mass testing campaign rolled out in response to those cases, no other cases were found, and those venues that were closed would be allowed to reopen from 18 august. in october 2021, parts of macau were locked down after four construction workers tested positive for covid-19. 2022 on 20 april, macau's novel coronavirus response and coordination centre relaxed the validity period on negative covid-19 tests for people entering from zhuhai from 24 hours to 48 hours. on 25 april, the negative test validity period was also extended for people entering from the guangdong province. on 19 june, health officials in macau announced that it had found dozens of positive cases of covid-19 in an unprecedented outbreak. driven by the omicron ba.5.1 subvariant, the covid-19 outbreak was the city's first since october 2021. while the exact source of the virus that seeded the outbreak the prior month