Masks in British Columbia come off at midnight tonight; vaccine cards to remain in use until April. Doctor Henry and Minister Dix outline path ahead as COVID fortunes improve province wide

At the midnight hour tonight, British Columbians can put away their 
face coverings if they wish, as Public Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry  
removes the provincial Mask Wearing Order

With an enthusiastic declaration that things are going well in the province when it comes to the response to COVID, Doctor Bonnie Henry, British Columbia's Public Health Officer announced some relaxations of measures that will be most likely be well received by the public.

"We are progressing well, and we are going in the right direction. And it really is thanks to people in British Columbia stepping up and doing what needed to do. We now have over 55 percent of children five to eleven who have been vaccinated. 90 over 90 percent of British Columbians 12 and over have received two doses of vaccine and about 56 percent of people have received that important booster dose. Our hospitalizations continue to decrease which is really, really, good news" -- Doctor Bonnie Henry

Doctor Henry also noted as to how a range of factors have decreased and with that the risks to the community are now reduced.

"As transmission goes down, so the risks to all of us go down in the community. 

Our approach has always been to only have the minimal necessary restrictions to keep people safe and to prevent the transmission, particularly to those who are more susceptible to more severe illness with COVID-19, it is finding that balance. 

I am extremely grateful to the millions of people through out our province for your willingness and support in adopting our COVID-19  safety measures. Your efforts, combined with with these high vaccination rates have saved countless lives"

The one move on the day that will generate the most discussion is the announcement that British Columbia's mandate for Mask wearing will come to an end at one minute after midnight (12:01 AM March 11). 

Along with the mask covering order, long term care visitation has been restored to those facilities, overnight child and youth camp orders have been lifted and the capacity limits for Faith Gathering have been lifted.

For services such as BC Transit, the option is available to continue on with a mask requirement, though Doctor Henry noted that those organizations would have to do their own due diligence on that possibility.

For those services regulated by the Federal Government, guidance from masking will have to come from Federal officials.

Doctor Henry offered a few observations on the mask free environment we are about to enter and how everyone will move at their own pace.

"We have learned and we know now a lot more about masks that we did a few years ago, they are both are a layer of protection for ourselves and importantly a layer of protection for those around us. 

So while masks are no longer required, or mandated under an order as of tomorrow, some people in some locations will and continue to use masks personally, or in their business and that's OK.   

We need to support that, we need to recognize that we all have our own risks and our own vulnerabilities" -- Doctor Bonnie Henry

The Vaccine passport program will remain in place through this month, with it to no longer required as of April 8th.

Previous Safety plans will return towards specific situations for workplaces and post secondary education institutions.  

When it comes to Education in British Columbia, Primary and Secondary Schools will work out their own plans moving forward following Spring Break.

As to how the province reached a place where measures can begin to be removed, Doctor Henry observed that much of the success has come owing to the status of British Columbia as one of the most vaccinated jurisdictions in the world.

An achievement that has provided for the strong results being found province wide.

"We are one of the most vaccinated jurisdictions in the world, and that layer, that protection we get through vaccination and that immunity that we have across our communities has meant that we have been resilient in getting through the Omicron wave ... We have seen very strong protection against severe illness and we do know, that people with two doses of vaccine are less likely to get infected themselves and less likely to transmit to others.  And that increases the protection that we see with three doses with that booster dose boosts it up to over 60 percent against any infection and that again protects against transmission to others " -- Doctor Bonnie Henry

Towards the future, the approach the province is taking now is that COVID will remain with us, they will have to take on any challenges that may come up, with a focus looking ahead towards the Fall Respiratory Season.

The full information session can be reviewed from the video presentation below:

The Province has also provided further background on the changing narrative on COVID which you can review here, along with additional information featuring all the elements that made for today's evolution in the provincial response.

The announcement today, was one very much had the feeling or vibe of a closing of a chapter on the provincial efforts related to COVID, with just one more public information presentation to come in April as the Provincial authorities move their program of removal of measures forward. 

The scope of the information relay will also be adjusted at that point, with the shift away from daily updates to those of a weekly version.

A look at the path of COVID in the province over the last two years can he reviewed from our archive page here.

Cross posted from the North Coast Review.