Manitoba’s top doctor says politicians who remove masks for photos are not offside

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This article was published 20/10/2021 (1801 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Turns out, there was no need for Manitoba politicians to apologize for being maskless in photos taken at a Winnipeg Art Gallery gala on the weekend.

Chief public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin said while he doesn’t know details of what happened, people are allowed to remove their masks briefly to take photos.

Manitoba requires mask use in all indoor public places under its COVID-19 public health orders.

The orders include some exemptions, such as temporarily removing a mask to eat or drink, to give a speech or to receive a service that requires the mask to be off.

Last weekend, three Manitoba cabinet ministers, including the health minister, and a Winnipeg city councillor were photographed without masks and standing alongside other people at the art gallery. The images were shared on social media.

They later said they were sorry.

“For the most part, that mask should be on. There are brief periods where it’s reasonable for it to come off,” Roussin said Wednesday.

“If it was simply to remove a mask for the purposes of getting a photograph, and then you put it back on, then… that’s in keeping with advice we’ve provided.”

Health Minister Audrey Gordon said she removed her mask while sitting down to eat and stood up briefly to pose for the pictures.

Families Minister Rochelle Squires and Culture Minister Cathy Cox were also photographed maskless while standing.

City Coun. Markus Chambers said Wednesday he removed his mask at the photographer’s request. In other photos from the same event, Chambers was wearing a mask.

“I apologize if the perception was created that I wasn’t abiding by the public health orders… I understand the frustration that some people might have around this, with respect to us as elected officials walking the walk as opposed to just talking the talk.” said Chambers.

“To be very clear, I wore my mask 99 per cent of the time that I was in attendance at that gala dinner.”

Public health will review events on a case-by-case basis to confirm if special accommodations to the health orders need to be in place, a spokesperson for the province added.

Roussin said an example of public health providing accommodation would be to allow people to take their mask off while taking photos with Santa at an indoor public place.

— With files from  Winnipeg Free Press staff