N.B. COVID-19 roundup: 3 deaths, province drops proof of vaccination rule, some businesses might not

New Brunswick recorded three more COVID-related deaths over the weekend, the number of people in hospital increased by 17 to 89, and more than 1,000 new cases of the virus were confirmed through lab tests, the COVID-19 dashboard shows.

The latest deaths include two people in their 70s, one in the Moncton region, Zone 1, and the other in the Edmundston region, Zone 4, and a person in their 90s in the Bathurst region, Zone 6.

The number of people in intensive care remains stable at three, with two of them on ventilators, also unchanged.

The new data comes as businesses and organizations are no longer required to enforce proof of COVID-19 vaccination for entry.

The change in restrictions took effect at 12:01 a.m. Monday and includes restaurants, gyms, salons, spas, entertainment centres and faith venues.

But some businesses are keeping the proof-of-vaccination requirement, according to David Duplisea, CEO of the Saint John Region Chamber of Commerce.

The chamber has launched an online poll to determine business reopening plans.

"There are mixed opinions and feelings on how businesses plan to reopen and return to more normal times," Duplisea said in a statement. "Some plan to continue with limited safety protocols and others plan to eliminate them all together.

"This poll will help us to better understand where the business community stands as they work to balance employee and customer safety with a viable business model."

The four-question poll asks businesses if they plan to continue with safety protocols, and if so, which ones — proof of vaccination, masks, safe distance, COVID testing, or all of the above.

It asks which sector or industry they belong to, such as hospitality, restaurants and tourism; retail; general business, or "other."

And it asks about their "staffing protocols," whether people work from home, in the office, or a hybrid.

The poll will continue until March 14.

New Brunswick introduced the proof of COVID-19 vaccination requirement in September 2021 during a spike in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations caused by the Delta variant.

Luc Couturier, president of the Campbellton Regional Chamber of Commerce and the owner of a local restaurant, Cafe Chez Wes, says he's hearing a mixed response to the change.

"It was kind of hard to turn [away] some of your customers when they've been supporting you for years and years. So it's a good thing for the majority, I'd say," he said.

Many employees are also relieved not to have to feel like "the police," checking people's papers anymore.

"But there are still some people not happy about it. They wish that it would have stayed," Couturier said.

Some businesses are still going to ask for vaccination, he said, but his isn't one of them.

"We chose that we're going to stop asking. But I still have staff that said, 'Don't take the plexiglass down. We [are] still going to wear our masks.' So there's still people, like, that will still continue some sort of protection."

It's difficult to know whether the eased measure will lead to an increase in business or if some vaccinated people might "be a little hesitant" to go out now, knowing non-vaccinated people might be there, Couturier said.

The past two years have been rough on businesses owners, he said. His own business, one of many deemed "non-essential" by the province when peak hospitalizations lead to lockdowns, saw a 40 per cent decrease last month, he said.

"My business is essential for my family. It's essential for my staff. I have 20 people that works here, that depends on my business."

Couturier urges caution to avoid another surge in hospitalizations and cases.

"COVID is still there. Restrictions are not, but COVID doesn't care about restrictions, and I think we still have to be careful. We're in a province that, like the age is pretty old, or older. So with an older population comes a bigger risk."

Dave Robichaud, the owner of Raise the Bar Fitness in Moncton, says he'll likely drop the proof of vaccination requirement.

"I've kind of bounced this idea in my head because the vaccine is understood that does not prevent somebody from carrying the virus. So should it matter to us if they are fully vaccinated or not? I mean, that's a question that, I don't know the answer, it's just something that I've been asking myself," he said. "So if the government … removes that restriction at this point, I'm fine to move forward with that."

He plans to check with members first though, he said.

"We're a small gym, we are under 80 members. We're all very close. So it's something that I could put the question out there and ask them how they feel about it."

Robichaud says proof of vaccination was "logistically … a little bit of a pain" to set up. But once members were registered as having shown proof, they didn't need to keep showing proof.

He says he lost out on a few potential new members because of the requirement.

"It wasn't a huge impact to the business per se."

All restrictions set to end March 14

With the end of the mandatory order, the province is set to lift all other COVID-19 restrictions by March 14, including mask mandates, gathering limits and isolation requirements.

Robichaud says members will be welcome to continue to wear masks, if they feel more comfortable. And the gym will continue to offer physical distancing space for members during their workouts, at least for now.

Bob Cormier, the manager of Fairview Lanes in Saint John, thinks the province is dropping restrictions too quickly.

He says he hasn't noticed any impact at the bowling alley yet from no longer requiring proof of vaccination, but he's a bit nervous about the changes on March 14.

I just hope that by changing everything, it's not going to affect us that we end up getting shut down again, type of thing, because we've been shut down so much.- Bob Cormier, manager Fairview Lanes

"My staff and myself, we're going to continue wearing our mask, type of thing, you know, just be on the safe side, type of thing. And, you know, we'll see how this plays out, type of thing," he said.

"I just hope that by changing everything, it's not going to affect us that we end up getting shut down again, type of thing, because we've been shut down so much and we're trying to get some of our business back. But you know, people are scared and that type of thing. So, you know, I have mixed reactions to all this, type of thing, that's for sure."

Cormier expects staff will continue to wear masks for at least another month.

He'll also post a sign to recommend patrons wear a mask, even though they're not required.

"I've been talking to some of my customers over the last couple of weeks about all this. And you know, they're saying the same thing, 'We're going to, you know, depending on where we are, we're going to continue to wear a mask.'"

Cormier says business has been slow — about half than usual, or even less, at times during the pandemic. But it's starting to rebound.

Fairview was busy last week, with the Family Day holiday, he said. And he's hoping for another good week next week, with March break.

Breakdown of hospitalizations and cases

Of the 89 people in hospital Monday, 47 are hospitalized for COVID-19 and 42 were admitted for something else when they tested positive for the virus.

Two people 19 or under are in hospital, along with one person in their 20s, three in their 30s, and six in their 40s, while the other 74 are aged 50 or older.

The three people in intensive care include one in their 30s, one in their 40s and one in their 60s.

The seven-day average of COVID-related hospitalizations, which has been on a steady decline for the past three weeks, when it stood at 161 on Feb. 7, took a slight uptick Monday to 76, from 75 on Friday, when the province last released figures.

The seven-day average of people requiring intensive care, however, decreased to five from six.

There are 443 health-care workers isolating because of COVID-19, an increase of 23 since Friday. These include 234 with Horizon Health Network, 140 with Vitalité Health Network, and 69 with Extra-Mural and Ambulance New Brunswick.

The province's hospitals are operating at 90 per cent capacity and intensive care units are at 72 per cent capacity, according to the dashboard.

Public Health confirmed 1,065 new cases of COVID-19 through lab-based PCR tests between Saturday and Monday, putting the active case count at 3,542.

An additional 1,382 people self-reported testing positive on rapid tests.

The regional breakdown of PCR-confirmed cases includes:

Moncton region, Zone 1

• 437 new cases and 1,319 active cases

Saint John region, Zone 2

• 230 new cases and 727 active cases

Fredericton region, Zone 3

• 234 new cases and 758 active cases

Edmundston region, Zone 4

• 38 new cases and 210 active cases

Campbellton region, Zone 5

• 29 new cases and 111 active cases

Bathurst region, Zone 6

• 68 new cases and 273 active cases

Miramichi region, Zone 7

• 29 new cases and 144 active cases

A total of 731,429 PCR tests have been conducted to date.

A total of 49.9 per cent of eligible New Brunswickers have received their COVID-19 vaccine booster dose, up from 49.7 per cent on Friday, 87 per cent have received two vaccine doses, up from 86.9 per cent, and 92.8 per cent have received one dose, unchanged.

New Brunswick has had 37,482 cases of COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic, with 33,634 recoveries so far and 304 COVID-related deaths.