Order on masks in public indoor settings
As outlined in the EPA mask mandate order, masks are required for everyone in many public indoor settings. A face shield is not a substitute for a mask as it has an opening below the mouth.
There are exemptions for:
- People with health conditions or with physical, cognitive or mental impairments who cannot wear one
- People who cannot remove a mask on their own
- Children under the age of 12
- People who need to remove their masks to communicate due to another person's hearing impairment
Masks are required in many indoor public settings and all retail stores. This includes:
- Malls, shopping centres
- Grocery stores
- Airports
- Coffee shops
- On public transportation, in a taxi or ride-sharing vehicle
- Places of worship
- Libraries
- Common areas of post-secondary institutions, office buildings, court houses (except court rooms), hospitals and hotels
- Clothing stores
- Liquor stores
- Drug stores
- Community centres
- Recreation centres
- City Halls
- Restaurants, pubs and bars when not seated at a table
- Sport or fitness facilities when not working out (March 31 update: indoor exercise mask requirements)
Wearing a mask should be combined with other important preventative measures such as frequent hand washing and physical distancing. Only wearing a mask is not enough to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Read the BC Centre for Disease Control's information about mask-wearing to help slow the spread of COVID-19.
In Whistler, there are many good reasons to wear a mask: to help protect our vulnerable community members, to help protect our front-line workers, and to help local businesses survive. Find out why in Whistler, we wear masks.