Many countries hard-hit by the coronavirus are easing their strict and often unpopular measures to fight COVID-19. Night clubs and movie theaters are reopening. People are no longer wearing face coverings, or masks, in public, especially in Europe and North America. Slowly, many countries are easing their COVID-19 restrictions, as officials hope the Omicron wave has passed its peak. The highly contagious Omicron variant has resulted in at least 90 million cases worldwide over the past 10 weeks. That is more than all cases in 2020, the pandemic’s first year. But the World Health Organization (WHO) this week said some countries can now consider easing the rules. They can do so if they have high vaccination rates, their health care systems are strong and cases are not trending in the wrong direction.