Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - February 28, 2022, Winnipeg, Manitoba <§> PAGE A5 MONDAY,FEBRUARY28,2022 • WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM NEWS I COVID-19 PANDEMIC A5 Mask rules to stay for federal buildings <s> Ottawa to ignore Manitoba's relaxing of restrictions, at least for now DYLAN ROBERTSON OTTAWA — Manitoba is about to drop requirements for both masks and proof of vaccination in the public spaces the province regulates, but Ottawa remains cautious about its turf. That means Winnipeggers should take both a mask and their immunization card when visiting federal office buildings and the Royal Canadian Mint. In fact, masks should be the last COVID-19 measure that Canadians scrap, the nation’s top doctor said. “Even if there are no requirements, depending on the virus activity level, people should choose to wear a mask,” Dr. Theresa Tam said Friday. “It’s good for the prevention of not just COVID-19, but maybe other respiratory viruses as well,” Tam said, in response to questions from the Free Press. The public service occupational health program, which provides guidance to federal government workplaces, says it still advises indoor workers in Manitoba and elsewhere to keep their masks on. “Based on the latest evidence, (Health Canada) recommends that masks are worn in federal workplaces, even if there is no longer a provincial mask mandate,” wrote departmental spokeswoman Anne Génier. She noted that it’s still up to federal departments and agencies to craft rules that reflect their work settings, employee tasks and local COVID-19 trends. “Masks are an important public health measure that can help prevent the transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19,” Génier wrote. Crown corporations set their own rules, and seem to be proceeding cautiously. The Canadian Museum for Human Rights will drop its vaccine-passport - Hill's - 'V ' - .Y 35iEiPpgiii8iypi TREVOR HAGAN/WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES If you're planning to visit federally regulated buildings in Manitoba, such as the Royal Canadian Mint, take a mask. requirement alongside the province on March 1, but is still pondering whether it will require face masks when Manitoba scraps that rule on March 15. The Royal Canadian Mint says it will consider lifting some rules in the future. “For the time being, the Mint is maintaining the requirement for visitors to our facilities in Winnipeg and Ottawa to mask and provide proof of vaccination,” wrote spokeswoman Michelle Richardson. The other major Crown corporation based in Winnipeg does not have many visitors; the Freshwater Fish Marketing Corp. processing plant in Transcona did not respond when asked whether it would maintain masking requirements. Private workplaces that Ottawa regulates — such as banks, railways and grain elevators — must set their own rules in compliance with a hazard-pre-vention code that aims to protect employees from COVID-19, as well as any other workplace risk. Those policies include whether employees and visitors need to mask up. “If the hazard identification and assessment determines that the most effective preventative measure is the provision of masks, employers must also provide training on the use, care, maintenance, and limitations of the equipment,” wrote Saskia Rodenburg, a spokeswoman for Employment and Social Development Canada. For months, Ottawa had required COVID-19 vaccination or a valid exemption for all government employees, including in Crown corporations, the military and the RCMP. The federal government is still consulting on its aim to broaden that requirement to include the private workplaces it regulates. But whether visitors need a proof of vaccination to enter these spaces varies based on the sector. Tam said provinces are in an awkward phase of pivoting toward optional measures, which many Winnipeg workplaces and public spaces have opted to maintain. “We’ve got to begin to move beyond requirements, and adapt our personal habits as well, to prevent virus infections,” Tam said. She added that those at higher risk of serious outcomes from COVID-19 should be extra cautious, regardless of what their province is requiring. “We need to do a better job of equipping individuals with the tools that they need to make those personal-based de- cisions,” she said. People can decide whether to don a mask based on virus trends, the same way people dress for weather conditions, Tam added. “Masks remain one of the foundational levels of protection — and it may be the last thing that you want to remove in your personal armamentarium of tools.” Tam’s assistant, Dr. Howard Njoo, added that people should respect other people who opt to wear a mask in public. “We also want to make sure that we don’t stigmatize and making it difficult for individuals, who choose or maybe want to wear a mask for lots of reasons,” he said. dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca COVID-19 AT A GLANCE MANITOBA Confirmed: 130,277 Recovered: 119,754 Deaths: 1,675 Active: 8,848 (AsofFridayat12:30 p.m.) CANADA Confirmed: 3,269,546 Recovered: 3,119,776 Deaths: 36,377 Active: 113,393 (AsofFridayat8a.m.) The latest: • Nearly halfofthe 500 million free COVID-19 tests the Biden administration recently made available to the public still have not been claimed as virus cases plummet and Americans feel less urgency to test. Wild demand swings have been a subplot in the pandemic, from vaccines to hand sanitizer, along with tests. On the first day ofthe White House test giveaway in January, COVIDtests.gov received over45 million orders. Now officials say fewer than 100,000 orders a day are coming in for the packages offourfree rapid tests per household, delivered by the U.S. Postal Service. The White House says Americans have placed 68 million orders for packages oftests, which leaves about 46 per cent ofthe stock oftests still available to be ordered. • The pandemic may have disrupted Carnival plans in Rio de Janeiro for a second straight year, but revelers who have flocked to the Brazilian city for sun, sea and samba still found ways to party on Saturday. Thousands defied an official ban on street parties by dancing, singing and mingling to the rhythm of Samba, sometimes as police looked on. Others attended more formal events that moved indoors this year after city hall banned "blocos," the tightly packed street parties traditionally thronged by those who cannot or do not want to lay out for pricey tickets for the official parade at the Sambadrome — which this year has been postponed to April because Brazil is still not past the Omicron wave. Vaccine eligibility: • First- and second-dose vaccinations are available for all Manitobans over five years ofage. Third dose shots are now available to all Manitoba adults. Check eligibility criteria and recommended time frames between doses at wfp.to/eligibility. Appointments can be booked online at wfp.to/bookvaccine or by calling 1-844-626-8222. Quote: "The tyranny we have witnessed in Canada in recent weeks should shock and dismay people all over the world." — former U.S. president Donald Trump slams the Canadian government's response to trucker protests in Ottawa during a weekend speech mm mmn iiliS 3DÍSHÜES BRIEFS "SERIOUS INCIDENT" INASSINIBOINEPARK WINNIPEG police continue to investigate a "serious incident" in Assiniboine Park. Const. Rob Carver ofthe Winnipeg Police Service said Sunday that WPS was alerted to an incident in a park Li. ifitltl&tffl ✓ Stay Active ✓ New Friends ✓ Be Engaged ✓ Great Food at River Ridge ✓ 24 Hour Nursing Staff ✓ Month to Month Leases ✓ Warm, Family Environment ✓ Pet Friendly parking lot located north ofthe intersection of Shaftesbury Boulevard and Corydon Avenue this weekend. Authorities responded to the report around 3:15 a.m. on Feb. 26. Carver said he could not providefurtherdetailsSunday. He indicated WPS will provide information about the incident early this week. 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