'The time for patience is now over': Sask. premier announces masking order, vaccination rules
Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe has announced an indoor masking mandate will come into effect on Friday followed by a proof-of-vaccination policy.
In a video posted to Facebook Thursday morning, Moe said the fourth wave is "being driven almost entirely" by unvaccinated people.
"The choice to not get vaccinated is creating consequences for others and I would say very soon, it is going to create consequences for those who have made the decision to remain unvaccinated," Moe said.
VACCINATION PROOF
Moe said a proof-of-vaccination policy will be implemented beginning Oct. 1 with the "interim" indoor masking measure likely lifted later in the month
"The government of Saskatchewan has been very patient, possibly we have been too patient and that time for patience is now over," Moe said during a news conference in Saskatoon Thursday afternoon.
"To not get vaccinated is creating consequences … for others and now it, unfortunately, is going to create consequences for you."
In a press release sent ahead of the media availability, the Saskatchewan government said that proof of vaccination or a negative test will be required at establishments including restaurants, casinos, movie theatres and indoor facilities hosting ticketed sporting events.
The same requirements will be put in place for all provincial and Crown employees.
Moe said the negative tests that can be used in lieu of proof of vaccination will not by paid for with public money.
"You will be providing (the test) on your own, through one of the private operators that operate here in the province and you'll be paying for it as well," Moe said.
Under the plan, proof of vaccination will not be required at retailers, grocery stores, places of worship and fast food restaurants offering takeout and delivery.
Non-ticketed amateur sporting events, business meetings and places of business closed to the public will also be exempt.
The rule will not apply to indoor private gatherings. The masking order will require non-medical masks to be worn in all indoor public spaces.
Youth athletics will be exempted from the masking rules, with those under the age of 18 not required to wear masks while engaged in athletic activity.
PROTECTING OTHERS
Speaking at the news conference, Chief Medical Health Officer Dr. Saqib Shahab said higher vaccination uptake would help protect children under 12 who don't have the option.
"It is astounding to see that 98 per cent of children who test positive are in households who are unvaccinated, about 330 cases so far," Shahab said.
Shahab also took aim at those refusing the jab because they are "mired in conspiracy theories."
"It is surprising to meet young people who work frontline in restaurants and retail who are fully vaccinated and they say their parents or grandparents are not because they've seen something on social media," Shahab said.
"I think anyone who is deep into misinformation needs to course-correct themselves."
Saskatchewan Health Authority CEO Scott Livingstone said even with the new measures in place, the health authority is bracing for an expected surge in people needing treatment due to the number of COVID-19 cases already present in the community.
"We will be tested as an organization like we have never been tested before over the upcoming weeks," Livingstone said.
MORE TESTING
The Saskatchewan government also said it is "working to immediately expand widespread access" to home rapid-antigen COVID-19 screening tests.
Residents will be able to obtain the tests from locations operated by the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) and other agencies.
The province emphasizes the home tests are intended to be a self-screening tool, with SHA testing still needed to confirm cases with certainty.
Moe said that tests required
MOE'S PREVIOUS STANCE
Moe last held a news conference less than a week ago where he announced a reinstated self-isolation order for COVID-19 positive residents and the reduction of some health care services to ease the stress on the system.
During the Sept. 10 news conference, Moe said he firmly believes being vaccinated is a choice and that he was resistant to the idea of creating "two classes of citizens" based on vaccination saying would be a "very difficult and very divisive path" for the government.
Moe has resisted calls to reinstitute public health measures such an indoor masking mandate, describing such steps as "stopgap measure."
“They were always intended to be temporary, and they were to get us to a point where vaccines are largely available and accessible and they are today,” Moe said during the Sept. 10 news conference.
After a promising initial uptake, COVID-19 vaccination rates have lagged in Saskatchewan, which, along with Alberta, ranks lowest among provinces according to federal data.
Responding to a reporter's question, Moe shrugged off the notion that the timing of his government's announcement was related to Alberta premier Jason Kenney's rollout of public health measures Wednesday evening.
Moe instead framed the new measures as a continuation of last Friday's announcement.
OPPOSITION RESPONSE
In his response to the announced measures, Saskatchewan NDP Leader Ryan Meili pounced on the proximity of Moe's announcement to Kenney's, calling the measures "long overdo."
"Copying Jason Kenney’s 'too-little, too-late' plan is not leadership," Meili said in a press release.
The opposition leader said Moe "ignored the increasingly desperate voices" of those who have been calling for a change in the province's approach to managing the pandemic.
--Edited by Miriam Valdes-Carletti with files from Janelle Blakley.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
First court appearance for boy and girl charged in death of Halifax 16-year-old
A girl and a boy, both 14 years old, made their first appearance today in a Halifax courtroom, where they each face a second-degree murder charge in the stabbing death of a 16-year-old high school student.