Mask mandates end in all Atlantic Canadian schools, but health officials still recommend their use
For the first time in a long time, students, teachers and staff in all four Atlantic provinces are no longer required to wear a mask while in public schools.
Mask mandates were lifted in Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador on Tuesday. New Brunswick ended its masking requirement in public schools on March 14, following March break.
While some say they're pleased the COVID-19 measure has been lifted, others wish it had remained in place until the end of the school year.
"It feels like we could have kept it on until the end of the school year," one parent told CTV News. "We’re so close that it feels a bit disappointing to have it lifted at this point, so our kids are definitely going to be keeping them on until the end of the school year."
“We’re comfortable with our son going without a mask. We’ve talked about distance and washing hands,” said another parent.
In March, a group of doctors at Halifax's IWK Health Centre successfully lobbied Nova Scotia to keep masking mandatory in public schools when the province previously planned to drop it.
Though that didn't happen this time, doctors are still encouraging students and staff to keep their masks on.
In a tweet Monday, Dr. Andrew Lynk, the pediatrics chair at the IWK Health Centre, said Nova Scotia's health-care system is still strained.
"There are tons of COVID infections around. NS Pediatricians strongly recommend we continue masking till school ends in 4 weeks. Protect yourselves, your classmates & teachers, your parents & family," wrote Lynk on Twitter.
Lynk told CTV News staffing issues are also still a problem.
"Our IWK emergency department and inpatient wards are experiencing extremely high volumes, and we still have staffing challenges because of COVID. Our group is concerned about the resulting impact on our pediatric health-care system," he said.
The president of the Nova Scotia Teachers Union told CTV News Monday the membership is split on the issue.
"I think there's concerns with four or five weeks left in the school year, are we headed for a spot where potentially some schools are going to have to close because we're going to see an uptick in cases?" asked Wozney. "We simply can't deal with that extra pressure."
He also raised concerns that the weakened system might break.
"We were already in the middle of a substitute teacher crisis before Omicron and that's just been made worse. So, I think we're worried. Masking, really, has been the only layer of real protection in schools since November and we’ve barely been able to keep the doors open on a day-to-day basis," said Wozney Monday.
Health officials in all four Atlantic provinces still strongly recommend masking in public spaces, although it's not mandatory.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
NEW More unauthorized products for skin, sexual enhancement, recalled: Here are the recalls of this week
Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency recalled various items this week, including torches, beef biltong and unauthorized products related to skin care and sexual enhancement.
Where is the worst place for allergy sufferers in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
Do these exercises for core strength if you can't stomach doing planks
Planks are one of the most effective exercises for strengthening your midsection, as they target all of your major core muscles: the transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, external obliques and internal obliques. Yet despite the popularity of various 10-minute plank challenges, planking is actually one of the most dreaded core exercises, according to many fitness experts.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Angst and calls for resting places as Surrey, B.C., pet cemetery development continues
A single headstone is all that remains of dozens of markers for long-buried pets in a subdivision in Surrey’s Newton neighbourhood, where a half-acre parcel bears a large sign announcing the proposed construction of new homes.
Polar ice is melting and changing Earth's rotation. It's messing with time itself
One day in the next couple of years, everyone in the world will lose a second of their time. Exactly when that will happen is being influenced by humans, according to a new study, as melting polar ice alters the Earth’s rotation and changes time itself.