WINNIPEG -- The Manitoba government announced enhanced public health restrictions on Thursday, tightening the rules around gathering sizes.
Under these new measures, the province is further limiting social contacts by only allowing those who live in a home to go inside of it. Exceptions to this rule can be made for essential reasons such as child-care, health-care and home-care services, tutoring, construction, repairs, and emergency response services.
However, considering these orders will be in place for at least a few weeks, what do these restrictions means for those who live alone?
“We, of course hope these won't be in place for long. We're going to leave them in for the least amount of time that we require, but we're critical right now with where hospitals are at in terms capacity,” said Dr. Brent Roussin, chief provincial public health officer.
“We have to take these drastic measures to ensure the health-care system is not overwhelmed.”
Under the new restrictions, someone who lives alone is permitted to have one other person into their residence and they can visit that person’s residence as well.
The province added that gatherings of more than five people are prohibited at any indoor or outdoor public place, with the exception of a health-care facility or critical business that is following public health orders.
“We know there are significant physical and mental health benefits from being outside being active,” Roussin said.
“The risk of contracting the virus is much lower outdoors.”
Roussin noted that even during these five-person gatherings at indoor or outdoor public places, people still need to follow public health advice and stick to the fundamentals.
- With files from CTV’s Charles Lefebvre.
