Dear Registrants,
Summary
Listed below are the highlights of the changes coming into effect with Phase 3 of the BC Restart Plan on July 1, 2021. This information has been confirmed with WorkSafe BC. The requirement for these actions has been lifted, no requirement and no enforcement for the following:
- Reduced capacity in the practice facility. No limiting of the number of people in an area other than by the fire regulations capacity.
- Physical distancing in the practice facility. No requirement for marks on the floor or sidewalk to support the 2-metre separation as the separation is no longer required.
- Mask wearing in the practice facility, or anywhere is not required by WorkSafe BC as part of a pandemic restriction.
- Health checks of clients or staff entering the practice facility. No temperature checking and no requirement to ask about illness, though you can question a person who appears ill and ask them to leave or wear a mask.
- Enhanced hygiene of surfaces in the practice facility. Good hygiene is required but cleaning in between clients or on an enhanced schedule is no longer required.
- Provision of hand sanitizer at the entrance and close to all multi-touch surfaces in the practice facility
- Physical barriers in place where physical distancing is not possible in the practice facility (though if they do not interfere with business practices it is recommended, not required, to leave them in place)
- A written COVID-19 Safety Plan for the practice facility.
If a Practice Facility wants to have a policy in place to maintain any of these practices going forward as recommendations, it is acceptable, but there will be no enforcement nor requirement to do so.
To be clear there is no requirement that would support continuing with parking lot reception, or with preventing a client from accompanying their pet into the examination room, even without a mask, unless there is an individual facility policy against it that the individual practice enforces, as of July 1, 2021.
