Author: Tracey Young. (April 28, 2021). B.C. Mask Order and Exemptions: Laws and Requirements for Businesses and Organizations. Advocacy BC. Retrieved from: Advocacy BC: B.C. Mask Order and Exemptions: Laws and Requirements for Businesses and Organizations.
Introduction
The Government of British Columbia brought in a Mask Order under
the Emergency Program Act (EPA) on November 24th, 2020. This first
order was M425. On page 4 of this order there were … medical/health and other exemptions
that people could state as the reason they were exempt from wearing a mask.
Once this order was brought in, people with disabilities and
health conditions began to face a great deal of discrimination, abuse, harassment,
and humiliation when trying to shop, and carry out their daily lives in other
settings. Some people have even been refused entry to stores, to get their mail
in smaller communities, or to receive services, including health, and dental
care due to their inability to wear masks for disabilities and health
conditions. This is discrimination and violates the B.C. Human Rights Code.
I will provide a link to all of the information I refer to
in this article below under References so people can see these for themselves.
Current Mask Order in B.C. And Exemptions
On January 8th, 2021 the Government of British
Columbia brought in a second Mask Order under the Emergency Program Act (EPA).
This is M012. This is the current mask order that is in place in B.C.
All businesses and other organizations must follow this order.
On page 4 there are ten (10) exemptions listed. These include:
(a) to a person who is less than 12 years of age;
(b) to a person who is unable to wear a face covering because of
(i) a psychological, behavioural or health condition, or
(ii) a physical, cognitive or mental impairment;
(c) to a person who is unable to put on or remove a face covering without the assistance of another person;
(d) if the face covering is removed temporarily for the purposes of identifying the person wearing it;
(e) while inside a courtroom;
(f) while consuming food or beverage at a location designated for those purposes by the operator of the indoor public space;
(g) while participating in a sport or fitness activity at a sport or fitness facility;
(h) while receiving a personal service, or a service at a health professional 's office, if removing the face covering is necessary in order to receive the service;
(i) while inside a vehicle on a ferry;
(j) while communicating with a person who has a hearing impairment.
Unfortunately, even though these exemptions are the law in B.C., discrimination, abuse, harassment, and humiliation
have continued to impact people with disabilities and health conditions that
prevent them from wearing masks for those reasons.
BCCDC and BC Government Epidemiological COVID-19 Statistics and Data Regarding Masks
The BCCDC and BC government issue several updates per week about the rise in COVID-19 cases. These two infographics provide the most recent epidemiological and prevalence COVID-19 statistics from the BCCDC and BC government.
BC Centre for Disease Control:
April 27th, 2021
➡️2.5% of people in BC have tested + for #COVID-19 in 1+ yr.
➡️.2% Active Cases in the BC population
➡️92%
Recovered
➡️5% of confirmed cases hospitalized
➡️.03% of BC pop have died with COVID-19. Median age: 86.
➡️5% of ALL tests have been positive in over a year
BC Centre for Disease Control:
April 27, 2021:
➡️On Nov. 24th, 2020 #BC brought
in a Mask Order.
➡️There has been a 78% ⬆️of cases since masks were
mandated
➡️98,700 new #COVID19 Cases have been reported since then
➡️.2% of “Active Cases” in the BC population
➡️Masks have not stopped transmission of COVID-19 in 5 months
Source: BC Centre for Disease Control. (April 27, 2021). BC COVID-19 Dashboard. Retrieved from: http://www.bccdc.ca/health-info/diseases-conditions/covid-19/data.
Scientific and Health Facts About Masks
According to the BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) and the BC government/Ministry of Health “wearing a mask is not an effective measure to keep yourself safe from viral infection.” This is what the BCCDC and BC government wrote on one of the early signs that was posted in public health locations in the earlier part of 2020. This poster is the picture at the top of this article.
Masks have not stopped the transmission of infectious diseases such as SARS-CoV-2 virus, or people from getting COVID-19 (the illness that some people develop after being exposed to the virus), over the last five (5) months since the mask order was brought in on November 24th, 2020 in B.C.
Special Caution Note: Cloth masks have never been recommended in workplaces due to previous scientific evidence and research that associated these types of masks with potential increases in the risk of infections.Abstract
Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy of cloth masks to medical masks in hospital healthcare workers (HCWs). The null hypothesis is that there is no difference between medical masks and cloth masks.
Setting: 14 secondary-level/tertiary-level hospitals in Hanoi, Vietnam.
Intervention: Hospital wards were randomised to: medical masks, cloth masks or a control group (usual practice, which included mask wearing). Participants used the mask on every shift for 4 consecutive weeks.
Main outcome measure: Clinical respiratory illness (CRI), influenza-like illness (ILI) and laboratory-confirmed respiratory virus infection.
Results: The rates of all infection outcomes were highest in the cloth mask arm, with the rate of ILI statistically significantly higher in the cloth mask arm...
Conclusions: This study is the first RCT of cloth masks, and the results caution against the use of cloth masks. This is an important finding to inform occupational health and safety. Moisture retention, reuse of cloth masks and poor filtration may result in increased risk of infection. Further research is needed to inform the widespread use of cloth masks globally. However, as a precautionary measure, cloth masks should not be recommended for HCWs, particularly in high-risk situations, and guidelines need to be updated.
Source: A cluster randomised trial of cloth masks compared with medical masks in healthcare workers. MacIntyre, C. R., Seale, H. et al. British Medical Journal (BMJ), 2015 Apr 22;5(4). Retrieved from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25903751/.
Health Canada Mask Recalls: Unhealthy and Unsafe Masks
Health Canada has issued many safety recall alerts
about surgical and non-surgical masks that do not meet Canadian health and
safety guidelines. Unfortunately, many people have not seen these recall
notices and may still be wearing masks that are harmful to their health.
On April 2, 2021, Health Canada issued a safety recall for masks that have been widely distributed in Canada because they have been found
to contain graphene, which is toxic to humans.
Summary
- Product: Face masks labelled to contain graphene or biomass graphene.
- Issue: There is a potential that wearers could inhale graphene particles from some masks, which may pose health risks.
- What to do: Do not use these face masks. Report any health product adverse events or complaints to Health Canada.
Debunking False Information About Masks and How to
Manage Situations Where People Say They have an Exemption
I will debunk false information about masking that many business owners and employees have received to assist and support business owners to avoid expensive and harmful legal actions for discrimination.
- Masks do not stop transmission of infectious diseases, including SAR-CoV-2 have been used by many for over a year now in B.C. and different parts of Canada. Statistics from the BCCDC/BC government and Canadian government provide evidence that masks are not an effective public health intervention.
- Masks do not stop people from getting COVID-19. Our best scientific evidence of this is the different outbreaks that continue to occur, and especially health care workers who have still been diagnosed with COVID-19 even though they wear masks, gloves, and gowns.
- People are not “finding loopholes,” “lying” or pretending they need a mask exemption. When people come into a business, or organization and state they have an exemption, this must be honoured, and accepted without question, or hostility.
- Many people have "invisible disabilities," which means they have health conditions and disabilities, which can be mental and/or physical health issues, and/or a combination of both categories.
- People who state they have an exemption do not have to provide “proof”, or “evidence."
- People cannot be asked what their exemption, disability, or health condition is and if they are asked this will be considered a privacy breach under BC freedom of information legislation because personal health information can only be collected for specific purposes that involve the provision of health care.
Special note: Individuals who file a complaint for discrimination related to masks at the BC Human Rights Tribunal will be required to provide evidence of their disability and/or health condition, and how this was connected to their request for a mask exemption, which is called an Accommodation.
Information and Privacy Legislation in B.C. and Mask
Exemptions
Private businesses and organizations in B.C. must comply
with the Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA). This means that a
store, or other organization cannot legally request personal and confidential
health information from customers who have explained they have an exemption
under the mask order.
People cannot be asked to provide a mask exemption card, or a
doctor’s note. This would violate that individuals’ privacy rights by forcing
them to disclose personal, private, and confidential information to total
strangers who are not legally entitled to this information.
A secondary violation would include forcing, or pressuring people to disclose this information in a public place where other people may witness or hear this information.
Another potential privacy breach might include a business, or its' employees asking personal health screening questions of a person in a public space in order to enter the business.
BC Human Rights Commission Information and Resources for
Businesses
B.C. Human Rights Tribunal: Mask Complaints
If your complaint is about mask-wearing when seeking a service, please see information about mask-wearing complaints. We encourage people to resolve these problems by talking to the service provider.
Read more about Mask Complaints
Link: http://www.bchrt.gov.bc.ca/tribunal/news/covid-19.htm#mask
B.C. Human Rights Commissioner
In December 2020, BC Human Rights Commissioner Kasari Govender issued the following media release, guidance, advisory, and poster to businesses in B.C.:
“As we adopt more extensive mask-wearing
protocols, it is important to ensure that the implementation of the
mask-wearing mandate does not violate people’s human rights, particularly the
rights of people with disabilities,” said Human Rights Commissioner
Kasari Govender.
“Our goal is to help keep British Columbians physically safe during the
COVID-19 pandemic and secure in the knowledge we are monitoring and protecting
their human rights.”
Anti-discrimination
Poster: Exemptions to the mandatory mask order in British Columbia
https://bchumanrights.ca/mask-poster/
Source: BC Human Rights Commission.
(Dec. 17, 2020). Mask exemption poster for businesses
now available from BC’s Office of the Human Rights Commissioner. Retrieved
from: https://bchumanrights.ca/news/mask-exemption-poster-for-businesses-now-available-from-bcs-office-of-the-human-rights-commissioner/.
WorkSafeBC: Information About Masks in the Workplace
Link: https://www.worksafebc.com/en/covid-19/health-and-safety/mandatory-masks-in-workplaces.
Articles for Understanding Civil and Human Rights and Informed Consent Laws in Canada
Understanding Human
Rights Laws for Businesses and Organizations:
Avoiding Human Rights Complaints, Damages & Other Harm to Your Organization
Related to Mask Mandates. Canadian Advocacy
Centre for Health, Safety & Justice.
Link: https://canadianadvocacycentre.blogspot.com/2021/01/understanding-human-rights-laws-for.html.
Civil & Human Rights Laws, Commissions and Tribunals in Canada and How to Document Discrimination for Filing Human Rights Complaints. Canadian Advocacy Centre for Health, Safety & Justice.
Link: https://canadianadvocacycentre.blogspot.com/2020/11/civil-human-rights-laws-commissions-and.html.
Advocacy
and Informed Consent for Health Interventions:
Masks, Temperature Screening, Hand Sanitizer, COVID19 Swabbing, Testing and
Vaccines. Canadian
Advocacy Centre for Health, Safety & Justice.
Link: https://canadianadvocacycentre.blogspot.com/2020/11/advocacy-and-informed-consent-for.html.
References
BC Centre for Disease Control (April 14, 2021). British Columbia COVID-19 Dashboard. Retrieved from: http://www.bccdc.ca/health-info/diseases-conditions/covid-19/data.
Government of British Columbia. (1996). Emergency Program Act. Retrieved from: https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/00_96111_01.
Government of British Columbia. (2020). Order of the Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General: Ministerial Order M425. Retrieved from: https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/mo/mo/m0425_2020.
Government of British Columbia. (2020). Order of the Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General. Ministerial Order M012. Retrieved from: https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/mo/mo/m0012_2021.
Government of British Columbia. (2003). Personal Information Protection Act. Retrieved from: https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/03063_01.
Health Canada. (April 2, 2021). Face masks that contain graphene may pose health risks. Recalls and Safety Alerts. Retrieved from: https://healthycanadians.gc.ca/recall-alert-rappel-avis/hc-sc/2021/75309a-eng.php.
MacIntyre, C. R., Seale, H. et al. A cluster randomised trial of cloth masks compared
with medical masks in healthcare workers. British Medical Journal (BMJ), 2015 Apr 22;5(4).
Retrieved from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25903751/.
B.C. Human
Rights Code: Legal Definitions of Discrimination
As a
business registered in the Province of British Columbia, your company has a
statutory obligation and responsibility to conduct business in compliance with all
provincial laws. This includes the B.C. Human Rights Code. The Code
defines and describes discrimination in the following sections and ways:
Discrimination and intent
2 Discrimination
in contravention of this Code does not require an intention to contravene this
Code.
Discrimination in accommodation, service and facility
8 (1) A person must not, without a bona fide and reasonable
justification,
(a)
deny to a person or class of persons any
accommodation, service or facility customarily available to the public,
or
(b)
discriminate against a person or class of persons
regarding any accommodation, service or facility customarily available to the
public
because
of the race, colour, ancestry, place of origin, religion, marital
status, family status, physical or mental disability, sex, sexual
orientation, gender identity or expression, or age of that person or
class of persons.
Special note: If businesses, or organizations deny, or refuse access, or service, or instruct people with disabilities and/or health conditions which prevent them from
wearing a mask to wait outside, or they are “unsafe”, or unmasked people must
be isolated and kept away from others’ would be considered discrimination under the B.C. Human
Rights Code.
Source:
Government of British Columbia. B.C. Human Rights Code. Retrieved from: https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/00_96210_01.
Copyright © 2020-2021.Tracey Young/Advocacy BC. All
Rights Reserved.
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