No more mandates: A timeline of COVID public health orders in Saskatchewan

As of 12:01 Monday morning, the Government of Saskatchewan no longer had any public health orders related to COVID-19 in effect.

Mandates have been a bit of a rollercoaster in the province, coming on fast and furious in March of 2020 when information about the virus was sparse and uncertainty was widespread.

As the weeks wore on and Saskatchewan hospitals didn’t see a huge surge, mandates were peeled away in the province’s first reopening plan.

But cases rose, slowly at first and then sharply, as the first winter with COVID-19 rolled around and public health orders were layered back on, including gathering limits that meant much quieter holidays for most.

Cases soon began to lower again and with vaccines now in the mix, spring and summer brought a new reopening plan, tied to first-dose vaccine thresholds.

As of July 11, 2021, Saskatchewan took its first stab at getting back to normal, but within weeks, cases began rising sharply, eventually seeing daily new case numbers higher than ever before and the health-care system threatening to buckle under the pressure.

The provincial government resisted new measures for weeks until, in mid-September of last year, it announced another public health order requiring masking in indoor public places and another implementing a policy requiring that people show proof of being fully vaccinated or that they’d had a recent negative test for many non-essential services and activities like dining inside at restaurants and attending a movie theatre.

Premier Scott Moe later admitted the government should have moved sooner in implementing the restrictions, and he learned from that fourth wave that mandates do work.

Around the end of January, at the first sign the Omicron wave may have peaked, the premier began hinting he wanted to get rid of the masking and vaccine or test policy as soon as possible. In early February he announced just that, along with severely reducing COVID information released to the public.

As of Feb. 14, the proof of vaccination or test mandate ended, and the public masking mandate ended just before the end of the month. The state of emergency will persist, however, the premier explaining that the Saskatchewan Health Authority still needs to be able to move workers around the province.

Critics have argued it’s too early to remove the restrictions and a presentation to Saskatchewan Health Authority doctors said the authority expected cases, and pressure on the health-care system, to rise as a result of mandates loosening.

Timeline

March 13, 2020: Restrictions on gatherings of more than 250 people indoors and gatherings of more than 50 people if they include people who had travelled internationally.

March 18, 2020: State of emergency implemented in Saskatchewan along with ordering the closure of non-essential businesses including gyms, casinos and bingo halls, and bringing capacity at restaurants and bars down to 50 per cent. Also restricting gatherings of more than 50 people.

March 20, 2020: Primary and secondary schools closed.

March 23, 2020: Gatherings of 25 people or more no longer allowed unless everyone is able to socially distance. Recreational, entertainment and personal service facilities must close and restaurants, bars and nightclubs restricted to pickup or delivery only. Medical services like chiropractors and dentists restricted to non-elective appointments.

March 26, 2020: Gatherings restricted to 10 people.

April 23, 2020: The Re-Open Saskatchewan plan unveiled.

May 4, 2020: Phase 1 of the Re-Open Saskatchewan Plan implemented. Medical clinics can resume appointments, outdoor recreation activities can begin and boat launches and fishing can resume.

May 15, 2020: Golf courses can reopen.

May 19, 2020: Phase 2 of the Re-Open Saskatchewan plan implemented. Some business and personal care services like hair dressers and massage therapists can reopen.

June 1, 2020: Campgrounds can reopen.

June 8, 2020: Phase 3 of the Re-Open Saskatchewan plan implemented. Gathering limits rise to 15 indoors and 30 outdoors. Remaining non-essential personal care service can open, restaurants can allow dine-in again at half-capacity, and gyms can re-open.

June 12, 2020: Beaches and playgrounds can reopen.

June 22, 2020: Phase 4 of the Re-Open Saskatchewan plan begins to be implemented in further phases. Private indoor gathering limits raised to 30, outdoor sports allowed to begin.

June 29, 2020: Libraries, museums and cinemas allowed to open.

July 6, 2020: Capacity limits removed at bars and restaurants with appropriate distancing, indoor recreation and performing arts allowed to resume.

Oct. 28, 2020: Curfew for sale of alcohol and bar opening hours limited in Saskatoon, limit of six people per table at bars.

Nov. 6, 2020: Masks now required in public places in Regina, Prince Albert and Saskatoon. Gathering limits reduced to 10 at homes province-wide.

Nov. 16, 2020: Masking mandate expanded to communities in Regina, Prince Albert and Saskatoon metropolitan areas and any community with a population above 5,000.

Nov. 19, 2020: Masking mandate extended to the whole province, at-home gatherings limited to five people.

Nov. 27, 2020: Masking mandatory at schools, gyms while exercising and in workplaces. Limit of four people per table at restaurants as well as a requirement that restaurants must collect contact tracing information from customers. All group and team sports suspended.

Dec. 17, 2020: Public outdoor gatherings reduced to 10 people, no private indoor gatherings allowed.

March 9, 2021: Social bubbles of 10 people from up to two households recommended.

March 28, 2021: New restrictions targeted to Regina, with art galleries, conference centres, theatres and dine-in at restaurants and bars closed, no private gatherings.

April 16, 2021: Restrictions on private gatherings and worship service limits reinstated across the province.

May 4, 2021: Re-Opening Roadmap announced.

May 17, 2021: Bars and restaurants open for in-person dining in Regina.

May 30, 2021: Step one of new reopening plan implemented. Public indoor gatherings of 30 people allowed, outdoor gatherings of 150 people allowed, private gatherings of 10 people allowed, six people allowed at a table at restaurants.

June 20, 2021: Step two of new reopening plan implemented. Public indoor and outdoor gatherings allowed 150 people, private indoor gatherings allowed 15 people, no limits to retail and personal care services, no table size limits in restaurants.

July 11, 2021: All remaining restrictions, including masking in indoor public places, lifted.

Sept. 17, 2021: Indoor public mask mandate reinstated.

Oct. 1, 2021: Proof of vaccination or negative test policy implemented for things like dining in at restaurants, event venues and indoor gyms.

Feb. 14, 2022: Proof of vaccination or negative test mandates ended.

Feb. 28, 2022: Mandate requiring masking in public indoor spaces ended.