COVID-19 restrictions on capacity, gatherings come into force in Manitoba
Tighter public health restrictions on gatherings and capacity for both vaccinated and unvaccinated Manitobans have come into force.
Health Minister Audrey Gordon has said the rules are necessary to try to curb the spread of the COVID-19 Omicron variant and prevent more pressure on overburdened hospitals.
Private indoor gatherings with vaccinated people are limited to household members plus 10 other people.
Gatherings that include anyone who is unvaccinated are limited to one household plus five guests.
Gyms, movie theatres and restaurants -- where people have already been required to be vaccinated -- are limited to half capacity.
Churches that require proof of vaccination will be limited to half capacity, while those that do not require vaccination status will be limited to 25 people or 25 per cent capacity, whichever is less.
The new rules are to be in place for three weeks until Jan. 11.
Manitoba's Opposition is calling on the province to provide financial support to businesses that will be affected by the latest restrictions and additional resources to help them enforce public health orders.
"We should know by now that business supports need to go hand-in-hand with increased restrictions so we can keep people safe and keep our economy moving," NDP economic development critic Jamie Moses said in a statement.
Nine additional cases of the variant were identified in Manitoba on Monday for a total of 17. But Dr. Brent Roussin, chief provincial public health officer, has said modelling from other areas shows that will quickly increase.
There were 200 new cases in the province Monday and 333 on Sunday.
The NDP also echoed previous calls for the provincial government to call in the military to staff up hospitals as case numbers continue to rise and more surgeries are postponed.
The province requested military help last week and Ottawa announced Canadian Red Cross nurses will be arriving in Manitoba.
Roussin has said it was not realistic to ask Manitobans to go without a holiday season for a second year and noted the new restrictions will allow people to gather in a safer way.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 21, 2021.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Parents of infant who died in wrong-way crash on Ontario's Hwy. 401 were in same vehicle
Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit has released new details about a wrong-way collision in Whitby on Monday night that claimed the lives of four people.
Three Quebec men from same family father hundreds of children
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
'What have we done?' Lawyer describes shock at possible role in Trump's 2016 victory
A lawyer who negotiated a pair of hush money deals at the centre of Donald Trump's criminal trial recalled Thursday his "gallows humor" reaction to Trump's 2016 election victory and the realization that his hidden-hand efforts might have contributed to the win.
Conservative MP says Chinese hacking attack targeted his personal email
A Conservative MP is challenging claims by House of Commons administration that a China-backed hacking attempt did not impact any members of Parliament, because the attack was on his personal email.
B.C. mayor stripped of budget, barred from committees over Indigenous residential schools book
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
Loblaw leaders call criticism 'misguided,' say they aren't to blame for high food prices
Loblaw chairman Galen Weston and the company's new CEO are pushing back against critics who blame the grocery giant for soaring food prices, as a month-long boycott of the retailer gets underway.
Orangutan observed treating wound using medicinal plant in world first
Scientists working in Indonesia have observed an orangutan intentionally treating a wound on their face with a medicinal plant, the first time this behavior has been documented.
'Giant-killer' Kazushi Kimura to race in Kentucky Derby this weekend: 'I'm representing Canada and Japan'
Six years ago, at age 18, Kazushi Kimura left his home and family behind in Hokkaido, Japan to chase a dream. This weekend, he'll ride in the Kentucky Derby.
President Joe Biden calls Japan and India 'xenophobic' nations that do not welcome immigrants
President Joe Biden has called Japan and India “xenophobic” countries that do not welcome immigrants, lumping the two with adversaries China and Russia as he tried to explain their economic circumstances and contrasted the four with the U.S. on immigration.