Canada dropping travel mask mandates draws ire: ‘Now is not the time’

After more than two years of being in place, Canada will drop its remaining COVID-19 travel restrictions come Oct. 1, so what does this mean for future pandemic management?

It was going to be her first vacation since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.

Ishat Reza had her bags packed and was ready to enjoy time off in Portugal, but when the federal government decided to drop its mask mandate on planes and trains on Monday, doubt entered her mind.

Reza, who has a pre-existing traumatic brain injury, was expecting Ottawa to drop just its vaccine mandate and ArriveCAN, but was caught off-guard by the federal government’s decision over mandatory masking. Feeling she is at higher risk for serious COVID-19 outcomes, Reza decided it wasn’t worth the risk to fly right now and cancelled her trip just hours before takeoff.

Ottawa’s decision to ease pandemic restrictions is yet another sign individual Canadians are going to have to play a greater role in protecting themselves from COVID-19 in the future, health experts say. However, with an expected increase in infections as the cold weather sets in, Ottawa shouldn’t have dropped its mask mandate and its decision “disproportionately affects” vulnerable Canadians, Reza said.

“We now are in a position where the risk is higher to get it on a plane or on a train, and we have to decide: are we willing to take that risk? And for me, the answer to that was no, I’m not willing to take that risk at this time given how prevalent COVID is in our society,” said the Toronto woman, who added she would’ve faced a non-mask-mandated environment on her flight home next month.

“Now is not the time to be removing measures that protect us from getting a very serious illness on a plane.”

After having them in place for two years, Canada will drop its remaining COVID-19 travel restrictions come Oct. 1.

In the lead-up to Monday’s official announcement, Global News and other media reported that Ottawa had decided to scrap its vaccine requirement, and would make ArriveCAN optional. Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos confirmed those changes on Monday, but also announced Ottawa’s mask mandate on planes and trains would also be gone at the start of next month.