The provincial state of emergency which had been in place since March 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic will be lifted on July 1 in British Columbia.
Premier John Horgan made the announcement Tuesday as the province prepares to enter the third phase of its reopening plan Tuesday with daily case counts steadily falling and the province experiencing one of the world’s highest vaccination rates.
More than 78 per cent of adults have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, and more than 30 per cent have been fully immunized with two doses.
Tuesday, the province recorded 29 new cases of COVID-19 across B.C.
The seven-day average case count has fallen to 60.9 — its lowest point since August. Hospitalizations are also declining, and are down to 107 as of June 28.
Tuesday also marked the first news conference since the pandemic began where B.C. journalists were invited to attend in person.
With B.C. now confirmed to enter Step 3 of its restart plan on July 1, recreational travel within Canada will be allowed again, as will indoor and outdoor personal gatherings with no limit on the number of people who can join. Kids will be permitted to have sleepovers with their friends again.
“We welcome Canadians back to B.C. provided you have those two vaccinations,” said Horgan.
Residents will be able to attend fairs and festivals, so long as a public health safety plan is in place.
Mask orders come off
Masks will be recommended, but no longer mandatory.
“It is important for us to continue to wear masks in those indoor settings where we’re around people we don’t know and when we’re not fully protected [by vaccines],” said Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.
Henry says there will be no need to provide proof of vaccination. She added that some people will feel comfortable continuing to wear masks and that should be respected.
Workplaces will be allowed to ease certain restrictions as they shift from strict safety plans to communicable disease plans which include protocols like handwashing.
Step 3 also marks increased capacity for outdoor public gatherings where 5,000 attendees, or 50 per cent capacity, will be allowed.
Fairs and festivals will be allowed to return to normal, albeit with communicable disease plans, although many of them like the Vancouver Pride Society had already announced they would be taking their events online.
Steep case decline
On Monday, Henry presented modelling that showed a steep and sustained decline in B.C.’s caseload. She said she was heartened to see that some pockets of the province were completely free from new cases in the past week.
The seven-day rolling average of new cases has now fallen to 62, the lowest number the province has seen since last August.
Henry said it was “looking really good” for B.C. to move to Step 3 on the target date of July 1.
Henry also noted that deaths from COVID-19 have stayed relatively low even during the punishing third wave of the pandemic, which she said “reflects the ongoing durable protection from immunization.”
British Columbians aged 12 and over who have not yet been immunized can register in three ways:
The province is aiming to have most people receive their second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine roughly eight weeks after their first.