Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has said that he will ask his health minister to set a date to end the use of face masks as a means of reducing transmission of Covid-19 in Brazil.

Masks have become a political issue in Brazil, with Bolsonaro long ranting against their use and frequently refusing to wear one in public despite a legal requirement to do so.

In the radio interview, the president argued that with much of the population already vaccinated or having caught the virus, masks are not needed, Reuters reported.

Bolsonaro said he had also commissioned a study into the use of mask-wearing with a view to recommending an end to their widespread use.

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