New Brunswickers will no longer need proof of vaccination as of Monday, February 28.
The news comes as Premier Blaine Higgs announced a plan to ease the province out of its COVID-19 health restrictions over the next month.
While vaccine passports will be eliminated on Monday, physical distancing and masking rules will stay in place a little longer.
However, on March 14 at 12:01 a.m., all mandatory public health restrictions will be lifted.
“At that time all mandated health orders will end,” Higgs said in a COVID-19 update on Thursday.
That means no more capacity limits, physical distancing requirements, and isolation requirements. All restrictions in public schools will also be lifted at that time.
Thursday’s announcement follows similar news this week from Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island of those provinces easing COVID-19 restrictions.
Respect People Who Still Wear Masks
Higgs said some people may still choose to wear masks and urged New Brunswickers to treat them respectfully.
“We need to recognize that some will be more comfortable with these changes than others. And some will need the added protection that masking will give them,” he said.
As COVID-19 restrictions fall away in the province, Higgs said the government will also take another look at its mandatory vaccination policy for government employees.
“As we lift measures, we will be looking at all our pandemic policies, including mandatory vaccination for existing employees,” he said.
Higgs didn’t specify exactly what that means for existing employees who are currently on leave. But he did say new employees will still have to be vaccinated to get a job.
Public Health Transitioning Back To Normal Operations
Higgs said he feels confident easing COVID-19 restrictions because the number of COVID-related hospitalizations continues to trend downward.
Public health authorities are now managing the situation and are “actively transitioning back to normal operations.”
Right now, 77 people in the hospital in New Brunswick have tested positive for COVID-19, and five of those are in an ICU. Of those in the hospital, 41 were admitted for COVID-19 and 36 were admitted for other reasons.
Province-wide, hospitals are at 91 per cent occupancy and ICUs are 76 per cent occupied.
Dr. Jennifer Russell, the province’s chief medical officer of health, also indicated it was unlikely restrictions would be put back in place.
“We are very hopeful, based on the modelling right now, that we can basically remove the measures moving forward,” she said.
Russell said there will probably be “some increases” in COVID cases “here and there” but that new cases probably won’t be “overwhelming.”
Trevor Nichols is the associate editor of Huddle, an Acadia Broadcasting content partner.
