The NHL announced updated COVID-19 protocols on Monday, including a “removal” of the requirement to test fully-vaccinated individuals daily.
The league also announced five other changes in a press release:
• Recommendation to receive booster vaccine(s) as they become available.
• Removal of “enhanced measures” and reverting instead to the start-of-season Protocol, except where otherwise specified.
• Updated recommendations for type of masks and steps to reduce community exposure.
• Removal of the requirement to test close contacts.
• Updated requirements for in-arena family spaces, game presentation and on-ice ceremonies.
The @NHLPA and the @NHL announced today updates to their COVID 19 Protocol.
Details: https://t.co/pcd7amXRuw
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) February 1, 2022
The league said the revised protocols will come into effect for each team following its last game before the NHL All-Star break, which begins Thursday.
It adds that the new regulations are in place alongside local, state, provincial and federal health laws.
The NHL says it has worked closely with the NHL Players’ Association in coming up with the rules.
The NHL says the new rules are in part due to the high positivity rate of COVID-19 from Dec. 2021 to mid-Jan. 2022 and the declining rate since then.
It adds that the protocols cannot reduce all of the risk of the virus and says they may be changed in the future.
The changes to the COVID-19 protocol further contain a recommendation to receive booster vaccines as they become available, steps to reduce community exposure, the removal of “enhanced measures” and reverting to the start-of-season protocol.
There full revised protocol list can be found here.
— With files from Canadian Press
6:23