ShareSeptember 18th Update: OWHA & the Ontario Government Vaccination Policies
2021-09-18
As previously communicated, the KGHA adheres to the policies of the OWHA as our governing body and operates under the directives of the Ontario Government, Ottawa Public Health and our facility partners. Please read this article for an update on vaccination requirements going forward.A shared understanding that this is an evolving situation and we are all to follow rules laid out by our governing bodies is especially important as we collectively navigate the kick off of the 2021-22 hockey season during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and ensure the health and safety of our players, team staff and extended KGHA families.
Starting next Wednesday (Sept 22nd, 2021), the government of Ontario will require patrons to be fully vaccinated and provide proof of their vaccination status and ID to enter certain business and organizations.
Fully vaccinated is having had 2 approved Health Canada doses of the Covid-19 vaccinations and be 14 days post the second dose.
Exceptions include, but are not limited to:
- Children under 12 years of age.
- Participants under 18 years of age who are actively participating in indoor organized sport for training, practices, games and competitions. The exemption does not apply to youth who are spectators at sporting events.
- Patrons who provide a written document, completed and supplied by a physician stating that the individual is exempt for a medical reason from being fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and the effective time-period for the medical reason.
- When a patron enters an indoor area solely to use a washroom
KGHA team staff, volunteers, parents and any spectator (including children between 12 and 18 years), will be required to provide proof of full vaccination to enter any facility in Ontario as of September 22. Any player 18 and older also needs to be vaccinated.
As such, the OWHA has revised their position requiring full vaccination of any eligible participant and will default to the rules of the Province of Ontario that provides for exceptions for organized youth sports. This position has been updated on the OWHA website for reference.
The KGHA Executive wants to be clear before the start of the season that some local private faciilties (i.e., Carleton University, TD Place and the University of Ottawa) as well as other facilities outside of Ottawa have enacted policies that require facility patrons including children 12 and up to provide proof of full vaccination (or valid medical exemption) to gain access and participate.
This means if your team has practice ice, home/away games or tournaments at one of these facilities, the level of participation the player can partake will be impacted in if they are unvaccinated.
To assist teams in managing rosters and lineups, the KGHA will require any participant ages 12 to 17 who is not vaccinated to disclose this status to the team staff and KGHA Risk and Safety. We will not be in a position as an associate to schedule team ice times based on faciity rules.
***Please be patient and understanding with facility employees as they ramp up vaccination screening as of September 22. We may experience delays entering facilities as a result. While the KGHA does not create these rules and is simply communicating them, we will NOT tolerate any rude or aggressive behaviour towards any Facililty employees. Any incidents reported back to the KGHA will result in disciplinary action.
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