Ontario's health minister says the province has no immediate plans to end its mask mandate and COVID-19 vaccine certificate system.
Christine Elliott says Ontario won't be following the lead of other provinces like Alberta and Saskatchewan, which started lifting vaccine passport rules this week and plan to end masking requirements in the near future.
She says Ontario intends to keep those measures for a while longer, though she didn't say exactly when they would lift.
Ontario started gradually lifting restrictions on businesses, social gatherings and other settings late last month, and plans to further roll back restrictions at three-week intervals.
Elliott indicated the province is sticking to that timeline, noting that Ontario wants to remove restrictions "as soon as we can," based on scientific advice.
Her remarks came as the province announced plans to expand access to rapid COVID-19 test kits.
Free rapid test kits will be available at grocery stores, pharmacies and other settings starting today, with information about locations to be posted online.