COVID-19 pandemic in Manitoba

Some isolated outbreaks occurred in communal Hutterite colonies and in the Brandon, Manitoba area in late-July and August respectively.

[4] On March 20, a state of emergency was issued by Premier Brian Pallister, which implemented enforceable restrictions on gatherings and business sectors.

[20] In July, a spike of new clusters began to emerge in Manitoba, centred primarily among communal Hutterite colonies.

[28] On August 19, the province announced "RestartMB", a colour-coded response system that would classify risks and restrictions on a regional basis.

[31] As of September 3, an outbreak at the Bethesda Place long-term care facility in Steinbach, Manitoba had accounted for four deaths (bringing the provincial total to 16), and at least 17 positive cases among residents and staff.

Multiple cohorts at the John Pritchard School were also quarantined and switched to remote classes amid cases involving students and staff.

The Winnipeg Metropolitan Region was placed under the "Restricted" (orange) tier of the response system on September 28, restricting the size of gatherings and mandating the wearing of face masks within indoor public spaces;[37] on October 13, the province experienced a triple-digit gain in new cases for the first time, at 124, with 95 of them being within the Winnipeg Health Region.

Sports venues were limited to 25% capacity, and bars, gaming establishments, and live entertainment facilities were ordered closed.

Chief Medical Health Officer Brent Roussin stated that a circuit breaker was being considered due to widespread community transmission province-wide, with the province having reported over 2,000 cases in the past week alone.

[42] On November 10, it was announced that the entire province would be moved to Critical on the response system effective November 12, prohibiting any social, religious, or cultural gathering, and ordering the closure of all non-critical businesses (with critical businesses restricted to 25% capacity), dine-in bars and restaurants, cinemas, concert halls, gaming facilities (casinos and video lottery), gyms, sports and recreation facilities, and personal care services.

[49][50] On February 12, 2021, the health orders were modified to allow some indoor businesses (besides casinos and concert venues) to reopen at 25% capacity, including restaurants (same household at tables only), gyms, indoor sports facilities (individual instruction only), outdoor sports facilities to resume operations (multi-team tournaments prohibited), weddings to be held with 10 guests, and places of worship to hold in-person services with a limited capacity (10% capacity or 50 people, whichever is lower).

Any business that was still closed could resume operations, excluding bingo halls, casinos, and indoor theatre or concert venues.

Places of worship are increased to 25% capacity or 100 people (whichever is lower), and dance companies, operas, symphonies, and theatre groups are allowed to resume private rehearsals.

They restrict retail stores to 10% capacity or 100 people (whichever is fewer), and order the closure of all dine-in restaurants (even outdoors), dance, music, and performing arts schools, galleries, gyms and fitness centres, libraries, museums, and personal care services.

[63] On June 10, Pallister announced plans to ease the current public health orders if certain targets for vaccination (both first and second doses) are met, with the first phase expected to begin by July 1.

[67] On July 7, ahead of schedule, the province announced that it had reached the vaccination thresholds required for the second milestone, and that details for the next phase could be revealed as soon as the following week.

The province also announced plans for a one-day "vax-a-thon" with a "festive" atmosphere on July 14, during which all of Manitoba's "supersite" vaccine clinics would have an expanded capacity for walk-in appointments.

[71] On August 24, Pallister announced that new pre-emptive public health orders would be implemented to reduce spread of Delta variant and prevent a fourth wave, including the reinstatement of mask mandates province-wide, new vaccination requirements for various provincial employees who do not agree to regular COVID-19 testing, and plans to restrict further activities to the fully-vaccinated only.

[72] Effective September 3, proof of vaccination is required for entry to any dining area and all licensed premises (also including food courts effective September 7), casinos and VLT lounges, gyms, cinemas, indoor recreational businesses and activities, and any ticketed concert or sporting event.

[73] By late-September, a fourth wave had begun to develop; the Southern health region, which has had some of the lowest vaccination rates province-wide, was noted as having the larger proportion of new cases in the province.

In addition, it was stated that due to vaccination rates, as well as their proximity to Winnipeg, the rural municipalities of Cartier, Headingley, Macdonald, Niverville-Ritchot, St. Francois Xavier, and Tache would be excluded from the existing health orders in effect for the Southern health region, and would follow the regulations in effect for the rest of the province (and in particular Winnipeg).

[80] On April 3, Pallister appealed to people refusing to comply with social distancing recommendations, calling them "thoughtless and stupid" during a press conference.

[81] As of April 9, health orders issued pursuant to the state of emergency became enforceable under provincial law, starting at $486 for individuals and $2,542 for businesses.

[82] On April 13, the province extended the closure on non-essential businesses by an additional two weeks, and stated that distancing measures would likely continue into the summer.

[94] On March 21, a drive-through testing centre opened in Winnipeg, at a site close to the Victoria General Hospital.

Vehicles entering Manitoba would be briefly stopped, and their drivers provided with an informational pamphlet on health risks and international travel restrictions.

[102][91] On August 12, Peguis First Nation re-introduced self-isolation restrictions for individuals travelling from Brandon and Steinbach, due to increasing COVID-19 spread in those areas.

[104] On August 19, 2020, the provincial government migrated to a tier-based response framework known as the #RestartMB Pandemic Response System, which would classify local risk of COVID-19 transmission based on health metrics such as test positivity, the rate of new cases, contact tracing, and health care capacity.

[105][106] In June 2021, Premier Pallister and Roussin announced a new reopening plan replacing RestartMB known as 4-3-2-One Great Summer, which is based on vaccination progress.

The plan is named for four categories of activities that residents "want most" ("Gathering and socializing", "Travel and tourism", "Shopping and services", and "Dining out and entertainment"), three milestones with targets around holidays (Canada Day, Civic Holiday, and Labour Day), and two responsibilities for all residents to receive a COVID-19 vaccine and continue following all public health orders.