(Lethbridge News Now)

By David Opinko/LethbridgeNewsNOW

Lethbridge doctors tell city council to remove mask bylaw

Jun 29, 2021 | 9:27 AM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – A group of specialists in respiratory and critical care say the City of Lethbridge’s face mask bylaw is no longer necessary.

Drs. Eric Wilde, P.L. Oviatt, Josh Henkelman, and Kurt Olson have jointly written a letter to city council that is expected to be addressed at the Tuesday, June 29 meeting.

Earlier this month, council voted down a motion that stated the city would introduce a new bylaw to get rid of the Temporary Mandatory Face Covering Bylaw (Bylaw 6239) within 24 hours of the province declaring that Stage 3 would be commencing, which would have set the stage for both the municipal and provincial mask mandates being lifted at the same time.

“The current decision by Lethbridge City council regarding ongoing masking is not reflecting the current status of the pandemic within our province or city, medically speaking,” reads the letter from the doctors.

Stage 3 is set to come into effect across Alberta this Thursday on Canada Day, which will remove the provincial face mask requirement, among other COVID-19 restrictions.

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“We, as a unified group of physicians practicing in Lethbridge, Alberta, call upon the city leadership of Lethbridge to reconsider their recent council vote to extend masking requirements until December of 2021″

The medical professionals say current evidence points to a “great downturn” in COVID-19 cases and the positivity rate.

As of the end of June 23, more than 70 per cent of Lethbridge residents aged 12 and up have received at least one vaccine dose while approximately 39 per cent are fully vaccinated.

Recently, Chinook Regional Hospital has had fewer than five COVID-19 patients at any one time, allowing services for all facets of routine medical care to resume.

“Well over one year of preparation and planning have gone into the response plan, should further waves emerge. With this in hand, we are surprised at the local resistance to embrace provincial-led initiatives for reopening. Clinically speaking, we rely on hard data to inform our decision-making processes.”

“Safe reopening, and protection of vulnerable individuals through more limited interventions than what is proposed by our city council, are both made possible via the vaccination efforts already in place.”

Lethbridge City Council is expected to revisit the mask bylaw on Tuesday as Councillor Ryan Parker will introduce a new bylaw that would repeal the current one. If it receives unanimous support, they could pass all three readings in one meeting, meaning the bylaw could be lifted by July 1.

READ MORE: City to re-debate rescinding mask bylaw, could be lifted same time as provincial one

The doctors are calling upon city council to adopt a parallel stance to province-led initiatives regarding COVID-19 restrictions, including for face masks.

The letter can be read in full here.