B.C. is on track to move to Step 3 of COVID-19 reopening plan, say health officials

A man wearing a protective face mask to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 checks his phone as the sun sets in English Bay in Vancouver, B.C., Monday, April 5, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

Vancouver -

British Columbia is on track to proceed to the next step of its COVID-19 reopening plan on July 1, which is expected to include lifting the mandatory indoor mask policy.

The news came during a COVID-19 briefing update on Monday.

“Things are looking really good in terms of going to Step 3,” said provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry

Henry refused to go so far as to say that B.C. would be entering phase three on July 1, which was the government's initial target date, but said “we'll have an announcement about that very soon.”

Under the plans presented earlier this year, Step 3 promises a "return to usual for indoor or outdoor personal gatherings," increased capacity for organized gatherings that would allow for fairs and festivals, the lifting of party size limits and extension of liquor hours at restaurants, and the reopening of nightclubs and casinos with limited capacity.

This third phase will also likely make masks optional. According to the restart plan, masks will be “recommended in public indoor settings.” People will also be allowed to “engage in careful social contact.”

“We're at the point where risk in our community is changing dramatically,” Henry said.

This means that masks may no longer be a necessary “last line of defence” for those who have received two vaccines.

B.C. initially resisted a mandatory indoor mask mandate, with public health officials saying that voluntary mask-wearing was preferred. Henry had said that a universal order would create “unnecessary challenges with enforcement and stigmatization.”

However, the province eventually implemented a mandatory mask policy in November 2020.

Now, Henry says she’s eager to lift the requirement, and instead make it a recommendation.

“As we have protection through immunization, and we have decreasing transmission rates, it's really important for us to give agency to people, and you wear masks based on your own risk,” Henry said.

Henry emphasized that although mask-wearing may not be necessary for people who are fully vaccinated, those who aren’t vaccinated may continue to need the protection of a mask.

“We are at the point where we (should) take away orders, and as soon as we can,” she said.

The province’s criteria for moving to Step 3 includes having at least 70 per cent of the adult population vaccinated with at least one dose, along with low case counts and declining COVID-19 hospitalizations. As of June 28, 2021 78.1 per cent of the adult population in B.C. has been vaccinated, and both case counts and hospitalizations are continuing to decline.