As of midnight tonight, New Brunswick enters phase 2 of its “path to green” reopening plan. The move comes just over 24 hours after the province announced entering phase 1 of the plan.
Phase 2 means travellers coming into the province from the Atlantic provinces will have no registration or isolation requirements, and the New Brunswick border checkpoint at Aulac will be taken down. People travelling from the rest of Canada will also have increased access. As long as they are vaccinated with at least one dose and have completed travel registration, they will not be required to isolate. Once federal guidelines allow, New Brunswick will also ease isolation requirements for travellers from Maine with one dose of a vaccine, and other international travellers with two doses.
The lifting of travel restrictions means New Brunswick will be a full partner in the Atlantic Bubble as other provinces follow suit. Nova Scotia has announced that it will lift isolation requirements for travellers from Atlantic Canada on June 23rd, and has plans to do the same for Canadian travellers by July 14.
PEI will be keeping its screening points, but as of June 23rd, Atlantic Canadians with at least one dose and who are approved for travel under PEI’s current rules, will no longer need to isolate. The province is also creating a PEI Pass, which will allow vaccinated Atlantic Canadians and eventually Canadians to come and go freely, without isolation requirements.
HUGS ARE BACK, AND RESTAURANTS CAN FILL UP
Masks rules will apply as previously, but Phase 2 does include eased restrictions on capacities for gatherings and close contact. As with the short-lived Phase 1, contact is now allowed with family and friends, and no longer limited to a Steady 15.
Restaurants, businesses and schools can move back to their regular capacity, but gyms, salons, and restaurants will still be required to maintain contact lists.
Limits on gatherings will change to the following:
Indoor informal: 20 people or fewer
Indoor formal: 50% capacity with operational plan
Outdoor informal: two metre distancing between groups
Outdoor formal: Maximum capacity possible with distancing and an operational plan
Faith gatherings: 50% venue capacity with operational plan, choir must be four metres from congregation
Sports and Sporting Events: Permitted with operational plan, subject to travel requirements
COVID CASE UPDATE FOR WEDNESDAY
There were three new case of COVID-19 in the province reported Wednesday. All three have been traced to previous cases. With 30 recoveries reported, there are now 58 active cases of COVID-19 in New Brunswick.
Zone one had one of Wednesday’s new cases. With recoveries, there are now just 7 active cases left in Zone 1.
Testing numbers in the normal range, with 1128 tests completed in the province, and 509 of those in Zone 1.
ATLANTIC CANADA & CUMBERLAND
In Nova Scotia, there were eight new cases of COVID-19 reported on Wednesday, and the total number of active cases in that province has dropped to 92. There are no active cases in the Cumberland Health Network.
PEI has reported no new cases since June 3, and has no active cases of COVID-19.
Newfoundland and Labrador reported one new case Wednesday, and now has 35 active cases of COVID-19.
