The interim leader of the NDP is calling on Ontario’s top health official to “clarify” his advice on wearing masks in indoor public settings, after he was spotted without one at a party in Toronto.
Multiple videos posted to social media last week showed Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kieran Moore socializing without a mask at a Toronto Life party, just days after he held a press conference in which he urged Ontarians to return to wearing masks in indoor public settings.
Speaking with reporters at Queen’s Park on Monday, interim NDP Leader Peter Tabuns stopped short of criticizing Moore’s decision to not wear a mask but did say that he should be “taking this this opportunity” to clarify his advice, especially with holiday parties fast approaching.
“We're not calling for his resignation but we are calling for him to clarify what the rules are if people are going to be eating and drinking,” he said. “We're in a tough situation, we're in a situation where our children's hospitals are full and the doctor has recommended people wear masks indoors. He needs to clarify all of this around eating and drinking and the parties people are going to be going to over these holidays.”
Moore has faced criticism on social media for his decision to forgo a mask so soon after recommending that Ontarians should be masking up amid a “triple threat” of flu, RSV and COVID-19.
However, on Monday Health Minister Sylvia Jones defended Moore at Queen’s Park, telling reporters that his advice last week was “consistent” with past guidance he has given.
“It is personal choice. You make your own determination depending on where you are,” she said. “If the space is crowded indoors, if you are looking after vulnerable individuals, that personal choice is really important.”
Ontario has not introduced a mask mandate so far, though Moore did acknowledge last week that such a step could eventually be taken should the situation in hospitals worsen.
On Monday Interim Liberal Leader John Fraser said Moore’s decision not to wear a mask in a crowded indoor setting is “very clearly a lapse in judgement.”
But he said that Moore can “regain his credibility” by admitting that.
“All sorts of people are asking us to us do this to protect our kids, to protect our children's hospitals but the government has lost the room because they're not walking the talk,” he said. “So all of us together need to do this so public health officers and other people across this province know the government has their backs when they ask people to do this.”
A number of pediatric hospitals have already had to limit elective surgeries due to significant strain on their intensive care units, including the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto.
