(Quebec) The mask will fall off at school after school break. Quebec will announce this new relief on Tuesday in a press release, according to information confirmed by The Press.
Posted at 8:03 a.m.
Public Health has given the green light to end the wearing of compulsory masks for elementary and secondary school students. The information first published by The Journal of Montreal have been confirmed by The Press, Tuesday. According to our information, the lifting of the mask will be ordered upon the return of school break, either in the week of March 7 for some or that of March 14 for others.
The announcement will come in a press release later today. It is not expected that the Prime Minister, François Legault, or the Minister of Health and Social Services, Christian Dubé, will provide an update on Tuesday on the evolution of the pandemic as usual. Moreover, with the relaxation of the measures, the Legault government will hold fewer and fewer COVID press briefings.
The acting national director of public health, Dr.r Luc Boileau, told The Press Friday that wearing a mask at school would be reviewed by public health authorities over the weekend.
The fact that well over 2 million Quebecers, including many children, have already been infected with Omicron and are therefore unlikely to be infected again in the next three or four months, could influence the final decision. Recent data also show a drop in the number of children reported sick in Quebec, underlined the Dr Boileau.
“We have to ask ourselves whether we still need to ask for this protection for children. We are in the process of recalibrating to find out if there is still an advantage, ”indicated the Dr Boileau in interview. Wearing a mask is a measure that has demonstrated its effectiveness, said the director of public health on several occasions in recent weeks.
The decision to withdraw it from primary and secondary school was taken during the weekly meeting of members of the Legault government and Public Health, on Monday evenings.
Most of the health measures will be lifted in Quebec as of March 14. This also applies to the vaccination passport which will not be required.