City council will hear from 12 delegates at their Wednesday meeting at Regina city hall when a COVID-19 update will be presented.
The update will include a report from City Manager Chris Holden, which discusses decisions the delay in the city’s proof of COVID-19 vaccination requirement for city facilities.
Wednesday’s delegations will feature residents concerned about the proposed proof of vaccination system in order to enter city facilities and COVID-19 restrictions, among other topics.
While the meeting will be happening at Henry Baker Hall, the city says the hall will remain temporarily closed to the public in order to limit the spread of COVID-19.
Public meetings, including Wednesday’s council meeting, will be livestreamed online.
The meeting gets underway at 1 p.m.
Proof of vaccination postponement
The City of Regina will not be requiring proof of COVID-19 vaccination to enter city facilities for at least a couple more months.
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The city has chosen to move its proof of vaccination date to Nov. 15 after setting a target date of Sept. 15 to require proof of vaccination for its employees back on Aug. 30.
Officials were also looking at Sept. 20 to require proof of vaccination for the public accessing indoor city facilities, with the understanding that the province would have a QR code system in place by mid-September.
The city said the QR code provides residents with a method of showing proof of vaccination while protecting personal health information.
Noted in the agenda for Wednesday’s city council meeting, City Manager Chris Holden has recommended a delay in the municipality’s start date for proof of vaccination.
“To ensure the successful implementation and a seamless experience for the public, the City is revising the target date to November 15, 2021,” reads a statement from Holden’s report.
“This target date remains contingent on the delivery of the QR code and app being provided by the Government of Saskatchewan. It also enables more residents to access eHealth Saskatchewan to set up their MySaskHealthRecord and to ensure residents know what to expect when visiting City facilities.”
Also mentioned in the report is that city officials are currently researching the QR code technology and making preparations to ensure Regina is positioned to “procure and implement the needed devices to ensure a positive experience for the public when accessing city facilities.”
“The City will require a reasonable amount of time after receiving the technical details to ensure we have completed the appropriate due diligence,” added Holden in the report.
“Operational impacts including technology requirements and staffing implications are actively being assessed.”
The report shares that the city is in the final stages of developing a vaccination proof policy for its employees in order to reduce the risks of COVID-19 in the workplace and provide a safe environment for members of the public accessing city facilities.
The city expects an additional worker will be present at most facilities in order to complete screening tasks. However, the city acknowledges that other solutions are in the mix considering public facing facilities have vaccination statuses checked at their point of entry.
“On September 14, 2021, our five unions and associations will be provided a copy of the policy for comment with a targeted implementation date of mid-October for our in-scope employees,” the report said.
“City employees and contractors will be receiving further updates on the policy and what it means to them over the coming days and weeks.”
The estimated operational costs tagged to activating proof of vaccination from Nov. 15 until the end of the year is $250,000, the city said.
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