Update: Mandatory Masks (Aug 10th meeting)
On Monday, Council received a letter requesting the mandating of masks in indoor public places. It also received a delegation cautioning it on limitations and risks associated with masks.
In response, Council had its first conversation about face coverings. Council ended up passing two motions.
One motion directed a public information campaign to be brought forward about the use of masks. The other motion was to continue this conversation publicly by considering a Face Covering Bylaw in the future.
I supported these motions. It is important for there to be good information about masks available, including about their limitations and risks. And Council should be insuring its conversations about masks happen in public.
Since our meeting, I’ve had many phone calls and several coffees with residents. Some are disappointed that Council didn’t go further and immediately mandate masks. And some are angry that Council is even having this conversation. I’ve appreciated hearing from both sides, sharing my views, and getting some very thoughtful push back.
Where I’m at with this conversation right now:
I don’t currently think that masks should be mandated in our community.
If (and that is a big “if” to me) masks are mandated, they should be brought in and phased out again based on concrete public health indicators. I’m not convinced that any of our current indicators justify mandating masks.
Right now, the province is reporting 12 active cases in the City, 6 active cases in the County, and 1 active case in the municipalities surrounding the County. I’m not aware of our ICU or hospital approaching capacity. The province doesn’t have any part of our region on its watch list, and I haven’t heard from its health officials that extra precautions should be considered in our community at this time.
I don’t think we should be requiring face coverings right now. But I also think this conversation should continue. Following is some context on why I think both motions passed Monday are an important part of that conversation.
If you haven’t already, I’d also encourage you to visit www.Bressey.ca/masks to get my FULL take on face coverings.
Motion on Voluntary Mask Usage
The motion: Direct Administration to bring forward a public information campaign to inform residents about appropriate use of face coverings to prevent the spread of disease and encourage the voluntary use of face coverings in indoor public places.
As I’ve written before, I take the advice of our Premier and other officials responsible for public health seriously. Largely based on their advice, I think there are situations where voluntary face covering should be encouraged.
However, this motion wasn’t just to “encourage the voluntary use of face coverings.” It was also to inform residents about “appropriate use of face coverings.”
There are big limits to face coverings, as well as some risks that come with them. On Monday, we had a delegation come to our Council meeting to highlight this.
Masks are not as important as hand hygiene, staying home when sick, and other preventative measures. As our community discusses masks, it is important for all people to know their limits.
Masks can pose some risk if not handled properly. If people do choose to wear masks, it is important for them to also be washing their hands when putting them on and taking them off, to store them properly, to dispose of or wash them frequently, etc…
There are also times where it is not appropriate to expect someone to wear a mask. There are people with very real physical and mental health challenges that make covering their face impossible or extremely uncomfortable. It’s very important for those who want to see mask usage increase to know that there are very significant challenges for some when it comes to masks. Those people shouldn’t be made to feel unwelcome or judged in our community.
It is worth encouraging conversation not just about the potential benefits of masks, but also their limitations and risks.
Motion on Considering a Bylaw
Develop for future Council consideration a Bylaw mandating the use of face coverings in indoor public places that includes recommendations on appropriate public health indicators that may trigger the enactment and removal of such a requirement.
This motion passing does not mean that Council will be mandating masks. In fact, my understanding from listening to most of my colleagues: like me, there are other Councillors who supported this motion but do not support mandating masks at this time.
What this motion passing does mean: that Council is willing to continue this conversation. And I think continued conversation is important.
We’ve received many, many, many emails and phone calls about a potential Face Covering Bylaw. Both from people who are opposed and in favour. Throughout my entire time on Council, nothing has created this much (or this heated) public interest.
My biggest focus on Council has been to be communicative with and responsive to residents. Public conversations should inform Council’s work. If something is receiving this much attention, Council should be having a full and public debate on it. It wouldn’t be right for us to NOT talk about it.
And I don’t think it is fair or democratic for Council to have a conversation without some specifics before us. Most (if not all) Councillors have had informal conversations with our administration about what a Face Covering Bylaw might look like. And most (if not all) have ideas about what we might or might not support going forward. These conversations and thoughts should be made public.
Having a potential Bylaw brought forward is the best way to setup public conversation. Considering a Bylaw will lead to Council having specific options and recommendations before it. That is the only way for the public to see what Council and Administration are talking about, and to have opportunity to give informed feedback.
Also worth highlighting: this motion mentions “appropriate public health indicators.” That’s important to me, and I’m glad to see it is also important to Council.
Right now, I am not convinced that we currently have high enough risk in our community to mandate masks. And if we do get to the point of mandating masks, I don’t think they should be mandated indefinitely. I’m glad to see Council acknowledging that anything we do should be tied to concrete public health outcomes.