Mr. Chair, thank you for the question.
Of course, many of these measures are taken at the local and provincial levels, as well, not just by the federal government. The current status of public health measures is decided more at that local level.
I think it's a combination of different assessments and metrics. First of all, we have to assess the virus—the variants that are currently circulating and their characteristics. That includes how transmissible they might be, whether they escape immunity developed through prior vaccinations or infections, and their virulence. How severe are those virus variants? Of course, there's ongoing study of host and population-level immunity, such as through the serosurveys undertaken by the COVID-19 Immunity Task Force.
The capacity of the health care system is very important. As people have seen, when hospitals, emergency rooms and other places are stressed, that needs to be taken into account in terms of whether, for example, mask wearing would help reduce some of that spread and impact on the health system. If any public health measures are put into place, they are there to buy time, as well. During any such time periods, provinces and all levels of government have to take action, including adjusting any of the recommendations and guidance required. It's also a balance between reducing transmission and its impacts and, of course, the potential negative effects of some of these measures on society.