Mississauga City Council to extend the masking by-law well into 2022
Published September 15, 2021 at 9:01 am
City Council is expected to decide this morning that Mississauga residents must continue to wear masks in public indoor spaces until the end of next March.
Councillors are poised to accept a recommendation from Dr. Lawrence Loh, Peel Region’s medical officer of health, that the current mandatory mask bylaw in Mississauga be extended to March 31, 2022 as the region and Ontario deal with a fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Loh sent the same letter containing his recommendation to Brampton City Council and the Town of Caledon.
The current bylaw expires the end of this month.
In an interview late yesterday with Insauga.com Publisher Khaled Iwamura, Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie said she agrees with Loh’s recommendation.
“Until we know it’s safe to take it off, of course we have to wear the mask…unless you’re outside in open air, not near people,” said Crombie, noting even outdoors she plans to wear the mask more often to set an example, as a politician.
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In recommending the extension, Loh cites new data that shows COVID-19 rates are on the rise again and that masking is a strong deterrent to the spread of the virus.
“Given the ongoing risks of COVID-19 to Peel residents, an extension of the Municipal Mandatory Face Covering Bylaws is necessary to help reduce the impact of the fourth wave,” Loh writes in his message to local councils.
As of Aug. 30, Peel has seen a one-week 18 per cent increase in the number of COVID-19 cases due the fast-spreading Delta variant, according to health department data.
The masking bylaw requires everyone except very small children and those with certain medical conditions to wear a medical mask inside public indoor spaces
“While there are no content changes required to the municipal bylaws, it is recommended that the bylaws be extended through to March 31, 2022, at which point in time we expect a higher proportion of Peel residents will be vaccinated against COVID-19, including a significant proportion of the currently ineligible 5–11-year-old population,” Loh states.
Currently, 74 per cent of the population age 12 and over is fully vaccinated in Peel.
Meanwhile, the City will offer more details on its COVID-19 plan at a press conference scheduled for tomorrow morning.
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