As life begins to shift gears into a new normal, and the public-health restrictions that became commonplace over the past two years begin to lift, Oxford County officials are tweaking its vaccination policy to reflect these changes.
As life begins to shift gears into a new normal, and the public-health restrictions that became commonplace over the past two years begin to lift, Oxford County officials are tweaking its vaccination policy to reflect these changes.
By early April, rapid testing will no longer be required for unvaccinated non-health-care employees, as well as any contracted tradespeople working on county projects.
“We thought it was important as the province starts to lift various restrictions … that we continue to monitor those changing circumstances to see if any amendments were required,” said Amy Smith, the director of human resources for Oxford County.
Staff observations since COVID restrictions began to relax on March 1 helped prompt the decision to amend the county policy, Smith said.
These changes, however, will not include anyone working in long-term care or in paramedic services.
“Those two services have very specific provincial directives that will remain in place,” Smith said.
The amended policy will become official some time in early April since staff recommended a short delay after consulting with the Southwestern public health unit.
“The advice that we got was that we take the month of March to evaluate and, if things continue to improve, then it’s acceptable to remove (those) requirements,” Smith said.
There is a 95 per cent vaccination rate among the county’s non-health-care staff which, Smith said, played a critical role in the decision to remove rapid testing requirements.
More changes can be expected as Ontario relaxes more restrictions and life returns to some semblance of normalcy, Smith said.
“We knew when the policy was developed that it wouldn’t remain a policy that remains status quo,” she added. “It’s really just monitoring how the pandemic is evolving and adapting our policies accordingly.”
The initial vaccination policy was implemented in September 2021, requiring unvaccinated staff to undergo rapid testing starting that October. The policy also mandated only vaccinated or tested contractors were allowed to perform work at county facilities.
While being tweaked, some key aspects of the policy will remain in place for the near future. For example, all newly hired staff will still need to show proof of being fully vaccinated, but this could change in the coming year.
“We’ll continually review this policy as additional restrictions are lifted and as, hopefully, this year we transition out of the pandemic,” Smith said.
In addition to these changes, the public will also be able to attend county council meetings in person without proof of vaccination as of April 13.
“We’ll continue to monitor the circumstances and make amendments as necessary,” Smith said.