The province’s mask mandate is set for review next week, but until then it remains in place.
Newfoundland and Labrador entered Phase two of its reopening plan, but the mask mandate will not be reviewed until August 9, as concerns about the Delta variant are causing apprehension.
Some areas, such as British Columbia and Israel, were forced to reinstate their mask mandate after COVID-19 case numbers began to soar, however, Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Janice Fitzgerald, says the mandate will only be dropped if the epidemiology is favourable. If the epidemiology changes, she explains they will pivot however they need to.
If the restrictions do ease on August 9, masks may still be mandatory in certain instances to protect vulnerable populations, such as those in long-term care homes. Dr. Fitzgerald says those restrictions will ease when 80 per cent of the eligible population is fully vaccinated.
She states there is still a risk, especially for older people who may not form as strong of an immune response, so they want them to be as protected as possible.
Fitzgerald Concerned About Remaining Population Not Vaccinated
(Photo: Flickr Government of Prince Edward Island)
Meanwhile, Fitzgerald says it is concerning that 17 per cent of eligible residents in the province have not received their first dose.
This number includes people who have not been available during the clinics, children who were not eligible for the vaccine until recently, as well as those refusing the shot.
Dr. Lisa Barrett, an assistant professor in the Department of Medicine at Dalhousie University, who specializes in Infectious Disease and Immunology, says she doesn’t usually go by the percentage of the eligible population, but rather the population as a whole.
She says the virus doesn’t know who is eligible for the shot and who’s not. She says around 48 per cent of the population has been vaccinated.
