Hamilton-area health officials conflicted about Ontario plan to lift some COVID-19 mask rules

Health officials in the Hamilton area are conflicted about Ontario's plan to lift COVID-19 measures.

The province has announced its masking requirements will be removed in most indoor settings like restaurants, stores and schools on March 21, with all remaining mask requirements and emergency orders set to expire April 27.

I understand throwing the kitchen sink at a problem like COVID-19 a year and a half ago when vaccines were not available, but we don't need to use the kitchen sink anymore.- Dr. Matt Strauss, Haldimand-Norfolk Health Unit

Dr. Peter Jüni, who heads Ontario's COVID-19 Science Advisory table, said "it's too early to tell" if removing mask mandates is the right move at this time.

Niagara's medical officer of health, Dr. Mustafa Hirji, said in an email his public health unit disagrees with the decision to remove masking requirements, saying it should happen when there are fewer COVID-19 cases.

On Twitter, he said masking is not a restriction. It's a "temporary common sense protection."

"Like speed limits aren't restrictions on freedom; they protect freedom to be safe on the road. Masks protect living life around COVID-19. Hard for vulnerable [people] to live if in hospital, dying," he wrote.

Hirji said in his email that the public health unit is still reviewing the rest of the announcement.

He also said that for now, there aren't plans to impose additional measures through a Sec. 22 order, but the health unit will review its plans as it gets closer to March 21.

Dr. Menaka Pai, a member of Ontario's COVID-19 Science Advisory Table and an associate professor of medicine at Hamilton's McMaster University, called the move to end masking in schools "callous" and "thoughtless."

The Children's Health Coalition, which includes McMaster Children's Hospital, released a statement encouraging people to continue wearing masks after March 21.

But Hamilton public health is "cautiously optimistic" about the province's plan, according to Dr. Ninh Tran, the city's associate medical officer of health.

"While Hamilton is past the peak and witnessing the decline of the Omicron-driven wave, we anticipate the risk of transmission will remain high through April as public health measures are lifted," Tran said in an email.

Dr. Matt Strauss, acting medical officer of health for the Haldimand-Norfolk Health Unit, said it's the right time to relax public health measures and allow people to take off their masks because of current vaccination rates.

"I understand throwing the kitchen sink at a problem like COVID-19 a year and a half ago when vaccines were not available, but we don't need to use the kitchen sink anymore."

Vaccination key against COVID-19, experts say

Strauss said research on the effectiveness of masking indicates it may help some people in some situations, whereas research overwhelmingly shows vaccines are "magnificently effective."

Hirji said the risk of infection is cut by 60 to 75 per cent for someone with three vaccine doses.

"Past infection does not provide as good immunity as vaccination and is generally found in research to be more equivalent to one dose of vaccine. So past infection plus two doses of vaccine would provide similar long term protection as three doses of vaccine," he wrote.

Tran also said data from the province continues to show that vaccination, including getting a third dose, provides strong protection against serious illness and hospitalization.