ONTARIO – On Thursday, July 9 the province of Ontario announced that it would extend all emergency orders made under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act to July 22.
This is the latest of a series of extensions of these emergency orders which restrict numbers of public gatherings, and have also been used by regional health units like the Eastern Ontario Health Unit (EOHU) to make masks mandatory in public enclosed spaces.
“Our government is getting Ontario back on track and more people back to work, but at the same time taking steps to ensure we don’t undo the tremendous progress we have made together,” said Premier Doug Ford. “By keeping these emergency measures in place, we will continue to support our frontline care providers, protect our most vulnerable, and ensure we can rapidly respond to potential outbreaks or surges.”
The EOHU provided a list of the businesses and other organizations affected by their most recent emergency order.
These include but are not limited to:
- Restaurants, cafés, cafeterias, banquet halls
- Retail establishments and shopping malls
- Churches, mosques, synagogues, temples, or other places of worship
- Libraries, museums, art galleries, recreational facilities, bingo halls, community centres and halls, cinemas, theatres, concert venues, special event venues, convention centers, or other similar entertainment, cultural, or leisure facilities
- Sports facilities, sports clubs, gyms, yoga studios, dance studios, and stadiums
- Common areas of hotels, motels, or short-term rental premises such as lobbies, elevators, meeting rooms, rest rooms, laundry rooms, gyms, and kitchens
- Public and private transportation including taxis and rideshare services
- Common areas of premises under the control of a regulated health professional under the Regulated Health Professions Act, 1991, S.O. 1991, c. 18, as amended, such as waiting rooms
- Common areas of hospitals and independent health facilities such as lobbies, food courts and retail establishments
- Spas, hair salons, barbers, nail salons, and other personal service settings that are subject to health and safety protocols provided by the Province of Ontario during the provincial emergency
- Municipal public spaces
The following are NOT considered an “Enclosed Public Space”:
- Spaces subject to provincial and/or local public health guidance:
- Schools under the Education Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. E.2, as amended
- Child care centres and providers governed by the Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014, S.O. 2014, c. 11, as amended
- Day camps
- Offices not open to the public including professional offices where clients receive services not open to public (e.g. lawyer, accountant)
