There were two announcements related to COVID-19 on July 26, 2024:
- Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry issued an order to end the public health emergency for COVID-19, and rescinded all related orders. The Provincial Health Officer stated she is confident that COVID-19 can be managed without the need for the public health emergency. Read the announcement from the Provincial Health Officer.
- In response, the Ministry of Health announced that the Province is making it mandatory for health-care workers in public health-care facilities to report their immunizations for COVID-19 and influenza and their immune status for other critical vaccine– preventable diseases. Some of this information was previously collected by health authorities and will now be collected through a provincial registry. Read the announcement from the Ministry of Health.
The College of Health and Care Professionals of BC (CHCPBC) is the newly amalgamated regulatory college for nine types of health-care professionals: audiologists, dietitians, hearing instrument practitioners, occupational therapists, opticians, optometrists, physical therapists, psychologists, and speech-language pathologists.
CHCPBC’s role is to protect the public. We are reviewing our practice standards to determine if any changes are needed to reflect the announcements from the Provincial Health Officer and the Ministry of Health.
It is important to note that the provincial vaccine registry for health-care workers is not affiliated with the College of Health and Care Professionals of BC. We recommend that any questions be directed to health authorities or to the Ministry of Health at CommunicableDisease@gov.bc.ca.
