National Post

Ontario to lift restrictio­ns, end vax pass

- Allison Jones

T O R O N T O • Ontario is ending its vaccine certificat­e system March 1, when capacity limits in public settings and restrictio­ns on social gathering sizes will fully lift as well, though masking requiremen­ts will remain for now. Premier Doug Ford insisted the steps are not a result of pressure from anti-vaccine mandate protesters.

“Today’s announceme­nt is not because of what’s happening in Ottawa or Windsor, but despite it,” he said Monday.

“The extraordin­ary measures that we introduced during this pandemic were always intended as a last resort. I stood at this very podium and promised you that these tools would only be used for as long as they were absolutely necessary and not one day longer. The removal of these measures has always been our objective.”

Public health indicators have been improving, with the positivity rate of COVID-19 tests dropping from a peak of nearly 40 per cent to 13 per cent, and hospitaliz­ations under 1,400 from a high of more than 4,000, Ford said.

Due to those metrics, Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kieran Moore presented a plan to lift the COVID-19 restrictio­ns and vaccine certificat­es, Ford said, noting that the plan had been in the works since before protesters began occupying downtown Ottawa more than two weeks ago.

Ford said he understand­s frustratio­n with the restrictio­ns, though he credited them for saving tens of thousands of lives, and lamented the divisions they have caused.

“All of it has polarized us in a way that we could have never imagined. I’ve experience­d this in my own family. It’s been one of the hardest things my family and I have ever gone through,” said Ford, whose daughter is a vocal opponent of vaccine mandates. “But for all of this, I can still take comfort in knowing that there remains so much that unites us.”

Ontario is now fast-tracking steps to lift restrictio­ns, including moving the next step of its reopening plan up to Thursday instead of next Monday.

On that day, social gathering limits will increase to 50 people indoors and 100 people outdoors, while capacity limits will be removed in restaurant­s, bars, gyms and movie theatres. Capacity at businesses such as grocery stores, pharmacies and retail stores will be set at the number of people who can maintain a distance of two metres.

On March 1, capacity limits will be lifted in all remaining indoor public settings and proof-of-vaccinatio­n requiremen­ts will end for all settings. Businesses and other settings can still require proof of vaccinatio­n if they choose, the province said.

NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said the vaccine certificat­es should stay in place, because they can still protect seniors who are at higher risk of severe illness and children too young to be vaccinated. A vaccine mandate for staff in long-term care homes will remain, Ford said.

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