BC could be dropping some COVID-19 restrictions later today

BC health officials are holding a COVID-19 briefing today at 1:30 pm, and they are expected to address some of the restrictions currently in place.

At a press conference last week, BC Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry dropped some subtle clues about changes that could be announced today in regards to the current health orders.

Bars and nightclubs have been forced to stay closed until February 16 and the current orders impact a variety of other settings as well.

While bars and nightclubs have remained closed for months, they did get some good news last week when the BC Ministry of Health offered guidance on how these establishments could stay open by serving food.

Other restrictions that are still in place in BC include indoor personal gatherings being limited to one household plus 10 visitors or one additional household. Indoor organized gatherings of any size are not allowed. This includes sponsored or ticketed parties and celebrations, as well as wedding and funeral receptions.

Outdoor organized gatherings are allowed, but only with a capacity of 5,000 people, or 50% capacity.

The other order that remains is in regards to indoor events at larger venues like Canucks games, being forced to operate at 50% capacity. This has been in place since late last year.

BC has made a number of changes to the way it reports COVID-19 in recent weeks, and it could still be announcing further changes. Last week health officials announced that active cases would no longer be reported on.

While lots could change today, the orders that aren’t going anywhere anytime soon include the need to present a BC Vaccine Card and the need to wear masks in most indoor spaces.

Henry suggested that we may soon hear “less about the pandemic as we get through this wave, and more about how we continue to manage our personal risks, as restrictions are adjusted in step with what we are seeing in terms of transmission and hospitalizations.”

You’ll be able to catch today’s briefing here.