'Abandoned and betrayed': Removal of mask requirement in B.C. health care sparks outcry
We’ve come a long way from the days of general mask mandates for the public, but a recent move to eliminate the requirement in B.C. health care settings is causing some outcry.
According to a recent BC Ministry of Health release, “People are still encouraged to wear medical masks in health care settings as appropriate,” but it is not mandatory.
Some groups, including Protect Our Province BC and DoNoHarm BC, are questioning the decision. This response comes after B.C. announced that it was launching the spring immunization campaign on April 8.
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In January, as part of responding to the respiratory illness season, the ministry said, “Medical masks are required for health care workers, visitors, contractors and volunteers.”
“On Friday, March 28, 2025, Dr. Bonnie Henry, provincial health officer, declared the end of the 2024-25 respiratory illness season. So, extra measures in health care facilities are no longer required.”
The ministry said that in some cases when additional precautions are required, health care workers will wear masks or respirators.
“The standard that requires use of personal protective equipment and additional precautions based on point-of-care risk assessment remains in place,” the ministry said.
Some groups suggest that the decision not to have masks as a general requirement in B.C. health care settings endangers vulnerable patients and frontline workers. DoNoHarm BC has spoken to health care professionals, patients and other medical experts who have shared their feelings about removing the mask requirement.
Dr. Karina Zeidler, the founder of Protect Our Province BC, said, “The numbers don’t lie: when staff mask in hospitals, it cuts down respiratory illness transmission by a third, while N95 masks can eliminate 98% of exhaled viruses.”
DoNoHarm BC spoke to a cancer patient in Victoria, B.C., who said, “I don’t understand how people can work in cancer care and not want to take this simple step to protect patients.”
There is also some concern due to a seeming rise in measles cases in some areas. B.C. confirmed its first case in five years last month.
A Vancouver resident living with long COVID said removing mask mandates makes health care settings inaccessible to those needing it most.
“Health care settings are now more essential to people like me living with compromised immune systems than ever,” they added.
A B.C. cancer patient also chimed in, saying, “Why is an X-ray tech not required to be in an N95 when she’s literally in a cancer patient’s face?”
One B.C. resident claimed they got infected with COVID for the first time after visiting LifeLabs.
“I got infected with COVID-19 for the first time at Lifelabs while getting bloodwork during the summer of 2022. Only surgical masks were used by staff and patients alike, and it was not protective enough to keep me safe, especially in the poorly ventilated space. That infection left me with severe chronic headaches and memory issues.”
The release from DoNoHarm also includes a link to a petition with nearly 30,000 signatures, asking for mask mandates to remain in health care settings.
The demand from DoNoHarm and associated groups is to have a mask requirement year-round and to provide clear direction to all of the health authorities to enact that requirement. We’ve put these concerns to the BC Ministry of Health and will update this article when we hear back.
Do you agree with the concerns of these residents and health care professionals that the mask requirement should remain in B.C. health care settings?