Coronavirus: Non-medical Masks Now Recommended For Canadians, Says Officials

As many provinces across Canada begin to loosen public health restrictions and gradually open their economies, federal public health officials are now officially recommending that people wear non-medical masks in situations where physical distancing isn’t possible.

After initially advising against wearing non-medical masks, federal health officials said in April that people who don’t have symptoms of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, could wear non-medical masks when in public as “an additional measure” to protect others — but officials didn’t present it as an official recommendation.

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Updated recommendations on the use of non-medical masks amid the ongoing pandemic will be posted on the government’s website later on Wednesday, Canada’s chief medical officer of health said Wednesday.

Dr. Theresa Tam has said some evidence suggests that COVID-19 can be spread by people who aren’t showing symptoms.

Tam, however, has emphasized that wearing a mask — whether medical or non-medical — does not replace staying two metres apart from people outside your household and maintaining proper hand hygiene.

Health officials on Wednesday said those measures must continue through the spring and summer months and urged that “staying home when sick is a must.”