Manitoba will change some public health orders once again, going into effect Friday.
The changes - confirmed to go into effect as of 12:01 a.m. March 5 - will include revisions to gatherings, retail operations and other restrictions and will apply to all Manitoba health regions, including the Northern Health Region (NHR).
Under the new rules, households will be able to choose one of two options - designating two specific visitors to come to the household or a new measure, forming a bubble with a second household to allow both households to visit each other. Outdoor gathering limits have been raised to 10 people, including non-organized outdoor sports and recreation.
Churches and places of worship will be able to open to 25 per cent or 100 people - whichever is lower - with distancing and mask use in place.
All businesses previously restricted from operating will be able to reopen, except for indoor theatres, casinos, bingo halls and concert halls. Retail stores and personal services can soon reopen up to 50 per cent capacity or 250 people - once again, whichever is lower - while restaurants and licensed premises like bars and pubs will be able to open to up to 50 per cent capacity. Only members of the same household will be able to sit together.
Music, dance and theatre facilities are able to open to up to 25 per cent capacity.
Indoor recreation facilities, like rinks, gyms, pools and other venues, can reopen at up to 25 per cent capacity, with health measures in place for common areas, locker rooms and a very limited number of spectators. In gyms, pools and fitness centres, masks must be worn at all times, including during working out with the exception of swimming in a pool.
Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister and chief provincial public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin both announced the changes in a press briefing March 2.
"We said three weeks ago - and three weeks prior to that - that if Manitobans remained cautious and if we continue to follow the fundamentals that have enabled us to bend that COVID-19 curve down and keep it down, that we would be able to share more good news and get back to doing some of the things that we love, seeing some of the people we have missed," said Pallister.
"Thanks to the caution and hard work of Manitobans, we have more good news."
"Manitoba's case numbers and test positivity rates continue to trend in the right direction. That's why we're now able to look at other options to cautiously reopen services in Manitoba," added Roussin.
The changes were determined in part by the results of an online survey on engageMB.ca - this latest round of changes saw about 27,000 responses. A vast majority of people who answered said they felt at least somewhat comfortable shopping at a store (95 per cent of respondents), shopping at a mall (81 per cent) or going to restaurants (74 per cent).
Future changes are anticipated to be announced in the next three weeks, pending new data about COVID-19 cases.
