Ontario’s remaining mask mandates expire this week, province mum on extension

Ontario’s remaining masking requirements are scheduled to expire this Saturday and there is no word yet if the province will extend the mandate.

The mandate was lifted in most settings on March 21, except for certain higher-risk indoor settings such as public transit, health care settings, and long-term care homes. Those were then scheduled to expire on April 27, but were extended until June 11 with the province in the midst of a surge in COVID-19 infections.

The Ministry of Health tells CityNews they plan to follow the Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kieran Moore’s guidance on how to move forward.

“The Chief Medical Officer of Health is currently reviewing and monitoring key indicators across the province,” reads a statement from the Ministry of Health. “We will continue to seek and follow his advice on next steps.

John Fraser is a re-elected Liberal MPP and feels the Ford government should proceed with caution.

“It would seem to me that it would be prudent to continue those mask mandates,” he says. “COVID’s not over, it’s receding, but we also know what can happen.”

Most COVID indicators have drastically improved since the mandate was extended at the end of April.

COVID-19 hospitalizations in the province are now sitting at 526, down from 1,734 on Apr. 27. Hospitalizations are down 35 per cent in the last week. There are 114 people in the ICU with the virus, down from 140 last week.

Wastewater signals in the province have dropped to levels not seen since mid-March, according to the province’s COVID-19 Science Advisory Table’s wastewater data.

Source: Ontario’s COVID-19 Science Advisory Table

Moore said at the time of the last extension that the province expected cases to “be back down to a very low endemic risk” by June.

The science table expects transmission to remain steady through the summer months with a potential for another rise in infections when people head back indoors more in the fall.

The province says once masking requirements are lifted, Dr. Moore will give further guidance on recommendations for infection prevention and control in health care settings.

The Ministry of Health turned down CityNews request for an interview with Dr. Moore.