Quebec extends mask mandate to end of April as COVID hospitalizations rise

A woman adjusts her mask while she waits in line as the city’s public health unit holds a walk-in clinic testing for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Montreal, Quebec, Canada March 23, 2020. REUTERS/Christinne Muschi/File Photo

MONTREAL, April 5 (Reuters) — Quebec will continue requiring masks throughout April in indoor public spaces, putting off plans to relax the measure by the middle of the month as COVID-19 hospitalizations rise, the Canadian province’s top public health official said on Tuesday.

The mostly French-language province is in a new wave of the pandemic, Quebec interim public health director Luc Boileau told reporters. Much of Canada is facing a fresh COVID-19 wave just as authorities ease measures meant to curb the spread of the virus. read more

Reporting By Allison Lampert in Montreal

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