Ontario’s stay at home order expires today, but for residents across the province, not much changes.
The order was first put in place on April 7th, requiring Ontarians to remain at home except for the purposes set out in the order, such as exercise, going to the grocery store or pharmacy, or accessing health care services. Once the Stay-at-Home order expires on June 2, these restrictions will no longer be in effect.
“With the Stay-At-Home order set to expire, we need to provide people with certainty so that they can continue to follow public health guidance,” Solicitor General Sylvia Jones says. “Doing so will help us to meet our goal of starting to gradually lift some restrictions when we enter Step One of the Roadmap when it is safe to do so.”
The government says all other public health and workplace measures will remain in place province-wide until Ontario enters Step One of the reopening plan, which is expected to be around June 14th.
You’re now allowed to leave your house for non-essential purposes, but the options for what you can do remain quite limited. Restaurants and most retail are still restricted to curb-side pickup, bigger stores still won’t be able to sell any non-essential items, and public camp sites are limited to day use only.
Ontarians are allowed to leave home to travel to a secondary residence in the province, but limits on indoor gatherings to households only and outdoor gatherings to up to five people remain in place.
As well, the province’s emergency orders under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act have been extended until June 16th.