During his presser today, November 6, 2020, Dr. Brent Roussin, Manitoba’s Chief Provincial Public Health Officer, announced that as of Monday, November 9, at 12:01 AM, Southern Health–Santé Sud will move to the Critical level (RED) on the #RestartMB Pandemic Response System. RED includes the following changes to public health orders:
- Bars and restaurants will be closed except for take-out and delivery.
- Most retail will be reduced to 25 per cent capacity.
- Sports and recreation programming will be suspended.
- Gyms and fitness centres will have reduced capacity to 25 per cent and masks will be mandatory, even when exercising.
- Movie theatres, concert halls, museums will close.
- Personal services have no change and stay at 50 per cent capacity.
- Non-urgent and elective surgeries and diagnostics will be suspended. Scheduled surgeries in a number of essential and time-sensitive areas will continue to be performed including cancer, cardiac and trauma. Patients will be contacted directly if their scheduled surgeries are affected.
- Visitation at all Manitoba hospitals has been suspended, with exceptions made on a case-by-case basis for patients receiving end-of-life care, in labour and delivery, as well as in pediatrics.
- Designated family caregivers may continue to visit personal care homes. General visitation may be suspended with exceptions in place for end-of-life care. General visitation to outdoor visitation shelters will be implemented, once operational.
- Faith-based gatherings are reduced to 15 per cent or 100 people, whichever is lower.
Public health officials remind all Manitobans who are able to work from home to do so, and to limit contact with individuals from outside the household. In addition, public health officials are advising the Winnipeg Metropolitan Region and Southern Health–Santé Sud region that anyone who is symptomatic, or has a household member who is symptomatic, the entire household needs to self-isolate pending COVID-19 test results. The symptomatic individual needs to stay in their own room and, if possible, use their own bathroom and not use common areas. Exemptions are in place for asymptomatic household members if they are an essential worker required to wear PPE while at work such as health-care workers or first responders. For information on self-isolation, visit www.gov.mb.ca/covid19/updates/resources.html#collapse2.
