*Update April 8, 2022: The COVID-19 Vaccination requirements have been discontinued*

After much consideration and deliberation, CASI-ACMS has decided to implement a COVID-19 vaccine requirement policy for all participants of our courses and programs during the 2021-22 season. Any members, staff, or evaluators participating in CASI-ACMS courses, exams, or member sessions this season will need to provide proof of double vaccination at the start of the program. The final details of the policy and implementation will be released shortly but we wanted to give everyone the most notice possible.

Firstly we will briefly summarize the reasons behind this decision and then we will outline the requirements in general so you can be prepared well in advance of the season.

Reasoning:

• It is very important for us to provide an environment where all members of the CASI-ACMS community can feel safe this winter.
• As an association it is our duty to take all reasonable steps to protect our membership.
• Many resorts have already announced vaccine requirements for staff this season and we expect many more in the coming days and weeks.
• Some resorts have indicated that in order for us to operate on their property we will be required to be vaccinated - we expect more of these announcements also.
• Some resorts have even gone as far as requiring that ALL visitors to their resort provide proof of vaccination and it seems that there will be more of these announcements also.
• We have been working closely with our industry partners through this decision and it is clear that the resorts support this direction - and without support from the resorts we are unable to operate our courses.
• Our partners at Canadian Adaptive Snowsports (CADS), Canadian Ski Patrol (CSP), Track3, and the Canadian Ski Instructors Alliance (CSIA) have already announced similar policies and we expect that the Canadian Association of Nordic Ski Instructors (CANSI) and Canada Snowboard will soon do the same.
• It simply would not be possible for CASI-ACMS to operate this season without this policy in place.

Requirements:

• All evaluators and course participants will be required to be fully vaccinated as of the start of their program.
• Participants will agree to this at the point of registration.
• Proof MUST be shown at the start of the course.
• Evaluators will check proof at the start of the course.
• Exceptions will ONLY be granted in the rare instances where a valid medical exemption can be provided.
• In these cases participants will need to provide a verified doctor's letter at the time of registration.
• Proof of a clear test result obtained within 72 hours of the start of the course will then need to be shown to the evaluator at the start of the course.

As mentioned above, further details and exact wording of the policy will be shared soon. We are working through the intricacies of implementing this policy across the nation in a way that is as easy as possible for all of us to manage.

We understand that this is a contentious issue for many and some of you may have some concerns. We can only stress that we are doing what we feel is best for CASI-ACMS, its staff and members, and our resort partners.

Thank you,

Simon Holden
Executive Director & CEO