Ontario’s Vaccine Passport to Go Under Review for Reopening Plan: Chief Medical Officer

Kieran Moore, Ontario chief medical officer of Health, speaks at a press conference at Queen’s Park regarding the easing of restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic in Toronto on Jan. 20, 2022. Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press

Ontario’s vaccine passports will soon go under review so a plan for lifting the COVID-19 mandates can be developed, the province’s chief medical officer said, as the province enters a state of emergency over protests against the governments’ COVID-19 mandates.

Dr. Kieran Moore made the announcement in a press conference on Thursday, where he said the public health indicators continue to show an improvement in the COVID-19 situation in Ontario, though the province will still not immediately lift the mask mandate or the proof of vaccination system.

“We’re in a very good position to reconsider timelines as well as all public health measures,” Moore said, adding that there will be a review of all public health measures “in the coming days.”

“We are reviewing all of them in the coming days, and anticipate we‘ll make recommendations to government as soon as next week. And there’ll be greater clarity for all Ontarians to understand the processes that will put in play in the timelines for removal of all public health measures,” he said.

He noted that Ontario is also ready to begin lifting Directive 2, which ordered hospitals to halt non-urgent surgeries, which will resume in accordance with the province’s guidance.

Ontario embarked on the first step of its three-step reopening plan on Jan. 31, and is set to enter the next phase on Feb. 21, allowing restaurants, movie theatres, and other venues where proof of vaccination is required to return to full capacity. Moore also said that timeline may be accelerated depending on the public health situation.

“Given how well Ontario has done in the Omicron wave, how well our health system is recovering, I would assume government wants and will review timelines as well as all public health measures, including when we remove proof of vaccination, when we remove masking in certain venues,” Moore said.

Moore also said Thursday that the dropping of COVID restrictions was not due to pressures from the ongoing protests in Ottawa that are blocking the Ambassador Bridge crossing, which connects Windsor to Detroit.

“No public health measures should be in place any longer than it has to be, and hence without any external pressure because I don’t really watch the news too much,” Moore said.

The Windsor protest is in solidarity with the ongoing truckers’ “Freedom Convoy” demonstration in Ottawa. The protest first began in opposition to the federal government’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate imposed on cross-border truck drivers, but quickly expanded to a national movement supported by many who want an end to all pandemic-related mandates.

On Feb. 11, Ontario’s Premier Doug Ford announced a state of emergency to deal with the trucker protests in Windsor and Ottawa.

Ford said the state of emergency involves measures such as imposing fines of up to $100,000 and up to a year of imprisonment for non-compliance, as well as additional authority for the police to take away the personal and commercial licences of those who don’t comply.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also backed Ford’s decision, saying that it was “responsible and necessary.”

Several blockades of Canada-U.S. border crossings have also occurred across the country in recent weeks. In addition to Windsor, protesters also have blocked the highway to the Coutts border crossing in southern Alberta and the Emerson Port of Entry in Manitoba.

Earlier this week, several provinces have announced plans to end their COVID-19 vaccine passport programs and other pandemic restrictions.

On Feb. 8, Alberta ended its proof of vaccination effective Feb. 9, and will lift other COVID-19 mandates in the next three weeks. Saskatchewan, which was the first jurisdiction in Canada to announce a plan to relax its pandemic restrictions, will phase out its vaccine passport mandate starting Feb. 14, while mask requirements in the province will also expire by the end of February.