Categories: Lifestyle

Will Alberta get rid of masks & gathering limits? A decision will be made this Saturday

Image via Shawn.ccf/Shutterstock

It’s been a long two years of guidelines and mandates, but this week more big news could be coming our way as Premier Jason Kenney revisits whether or not Alberta will do away with COVID restrictions across the province.

“On Saturday, February 26 the government will announce a final decision about proceeding to Phase Two of our plan to lift almost all restrictions on March 1,” he wrote on Twitter.

“Damaging restrictions should not last one day longer than necessary… we must learn to live with Covid, and get our lives back to normal.”

Much like other provincial plans we’ve seen in the past, officials will heavily rely on available hospitalization rates in hopes of not overwhelming our doctors or nurses. However, according to Kenney – “Encouraging data continues to show a steep drop in the Covid-19 Omicron wave. Pressure on our hospitals is declining.”

With this in mind, here are the restrictions that COULD be lifted following the announcement this weekend:

Any remaining school requirements removed
Youth screening activities for entertainment and sports activities removed
Capacity on all large venues and entertainment venues lifted.
Indoor and outdoor social gathering limits lifted.
Mandatory work-from-home requirements lifted.
Indoor masking no longer required.

Current measures such as indoor and outdoor gathering limits and capacity have been in place since December 24th; while other measures such as mandatory masking have been in place since 2020 so it’s safe to say that if Alberta does choose to move forward on March 1st, this will be the biggest step we’ve taken to get things back to “normal.”

For more information on COVID restrictions in Alberta or to stay updated please visit the Government’s website here. Until a decision is made, please continue to be patient, and safe.