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City says it's ready to open 3 mass vaccination sites early as more doses secured – CBC.ca

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Toronto has received enough COVID-19 vaccines to open three of its mass immunization clinics two weeks earlier than scheduled, officials said Monday.

At a news conference on Monday, Toronto Mayor John Tory said the clinics will open early to vaccinate residents who are over the age of 80 starting on March 17. Smaller vaccination clinics have already been ramping up efforts across the city, but the mass sites will speed up the rollout.

“This vaccine news is great news — it’s fantastic news,” Tory said. 

The three city-run clinics to open on March 17 are: 
• Metro Toronto Convention Centre
• Scarborough Town Centre
• Toronto Congress Centre

The clinics will operate seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. 

The city said it plans to have the remaining six city-run clinics open in the coming weeks, contingent upon vaccine supply being available.

When fully operational, more than 1,400 staff will run all nine city clinics, including vaccinators, nurses, screening staff, clerical and administrative staff and cleaners, Toronto Public Health said. 

“These are exciting and promising times,” Toronto’s Medical Officer of Health Dr. Eileen de Villa said about vaccine supply increasing, but she urged Torontonians to keep their guards up and continue following public health measures. 

The city continues to ramp up vaccination efforts, with Toronto hospitals and community healthcare centres operating 17 clinics Monday, including mobile teams and in-site vaccinations, to vaccinate priority groups in their communities. 

Over the weekend, 15 clinics were in operation, which brought the cumulative number of vaccine doses administered across the city to over 203,000, Toronto Public Health said in a news release Monday. 

When vaccine supply increases and priority groups are vaccinated, the city will move on to vaccinating the general population at more than 350 clinics, including pharmacies and mobile clinics across Toronto.

The city’s vaccination efforts will follow the priority framework established by the province. 

City launches interim vaccination booking site

Meanwhile, Toronto hospitals have launched an interim website where eligible residents can register and book an appointment for the COVID-19 vaccine as the city awaits the province’s centralized registration system to get up and running. 

Toronto’s Board of Health chair Joe Cressy tweeted the news on Monday, saying this is “not an ideal situation”, but a necessary step. 

Toronto Fire Chief Matthew Pegg said the timing of this online portal is important and was implemented “to bridge a very small gap” between this week and March 15, which is when the province is expected to launch their centralized site. 

The people who are currently eligible to pre-register or book appointments at hospital and health sector clinics include:

  • People who are 80 years of age and older
  • Priority health care workers
  • Indigenous adults (16 and up)
  • Adults receiving ongoing home care

Vaccinations at hospital and health sector clinics are by appointment only. Walk-ins or stand-by appointments are not available. 

“People who are eligible under the above priority groups must only sign up at one vaccination clinic. If you book appointments at multiple clinics, all bookings may be cancelled,” Cressy tweeted. 

Appointments can be made online or by phone via the call centre, which can be reached at 1-888-385-1910. 

On Monday, Toronto Fire Chief Matthew Pegg announced “much larger” supplies of both Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines will be delivered to city operated and partner health clinics.

Clinics will receive vaccine doses as followed: 
• Week of March 15 – 17,500 doses
• Week of March 22 – 98,920 doses
• Week of March 29 – 174,200 doses
• Week of April 5 – 80,730 doses
• Week of April 12 – 80,730 doses.

The city said it plans to increase the number of vaccines that can be administered monthly from 500,000 to approximately 975,000 as vaccine availability permits.

Pegg also said the possibility of 24-hour vaccination clinics — something city councillors have asked for — relies heavily on vaccine supply. 

40% of city’s cases screened as variant of concern

Dr. Eileen de Villa said that almost 40 per cent the city’s reported COVID-19 cases are now being screened positive as a variant of concern. 

To date, 2,004 cases have screened positive for variants of concern. A week ago, de Villa said that number was 1,179. 

“We have come perilously close to doubling this count in a week,” she said, adding that she’s also worried about potential effects of variants on vaccines. 

“Vaccines are powerful, but not beyond challenge.” 

De Villa said the city of Toronto saw 636 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday, (though the province has flagged there may be a data issue at play.)

“There were some challenges experienced by our provincial counterparts today on the data system. This is unfortunate but I know they have worked very hard…to correct things as quickly as possible.” 

The city also saw four more people with COVID-19 die. 

The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 sits at 257, with 53 of those in intensive care. 

City moves into grey-level lockdown

The province’s final stay-at-home orders were lifted in three regions Monday, including Toronto, shifting it back into the grey-level lockdown.

Under the grey lockdown tier of the framework, non-essential stores can open at 25 per cent capacity while indoor dining, gyms and hair salons remain closed.

When asked how important it is for Toronto’s economy to have non-essential retail stores reopen today, he said it is “very, very important” both in the context of the state of businesses and of the public’s well being. 

Tory said the last thing he wants to do is re-open now and then close again.

“That would be the worst nightmare scenario for most businesses.” 

In response to a question about the Centres for Disease and Control Prevention’s announcement Monday saying vaccinated adults can gather indoors without a mask in the U.S., de Villa said she expects guidance on this front to be provided shortly from the provincial level. 

But she said as it stands, remaining distanced from others is the best course of action. 

“There’s reason for optimism and hope and all the more reason for us to push through the last little bit.”

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Telus prioritizing ‘most important customers,’ avoiding ‘unprofitable’ offers: CFO

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Telus Corp. says it is avoiding offering “unprofitable” discounts as fierce competition in the Canadian telecommunications sector shows no sign of slowing down.

The company said Friday it had fewer net new customers during its third quarter compared with the same time last year, as it copes with increasingly “aggressive marketing and promotional pricing” that is prompting more customers to switch providers.

Telus said it added 347,000 net new customers, down around 14.5 per cent compared with last year. The figure includes 130,000 mobile phone subscribers and 34,000 internet customers, down 30,000 and 3,000, respectively, year-over-year.

The company reported its mobile phone churn rate — a metric measuring subscribers who cancelled their services — was 1.09 per cent in the third quarter, up from 1.03 per cent in the third quarter of 2023. That included a postpaid mobile phone churn rate of 0.90 per cent in its latest quarter.

Telus said its focus is on customer retention through its “industry-leading service and network quality, along with successful promotions and bundled offerings.”

“The customers we have are the most important customers we can get,” said chief financial officer Doug French in an interview.

“We’ve, again, just continued to focus on what matters most to our customers, from a product and customer service perspective, while not loading unprofitable customers.”

Meanwhile, Telus reported its net income attributable to common shares more than doubled during its third quarter.

The telecommunications company said it earned $280 million, up 105.9 per cent from the same three-month period in 2023. Earnings per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 was 19 cents compared with nine cents a year earlier.

It reported adjusted net income was $413 million, up 10.7 per cent year-over-year from $373 million in the same quarter last year. Operating revenue and other income for the quarter was $5.1 billion, up 1.8 per cent from the previous year.

Mobile phone average revenue per user was $58.85 in the third quarter, a decrease of $2.09 or 3.4 per cent from a year ago. Telus said the drop was attributable to customers signing up for base rate plans with lower prices, along with a decline in overage and roaming revenues.

It said customers are increasingly adopting unlimited data and Canada-U.S. plans which provide higher and more stable ARPU on a monthly basis.

“In a tough operating environment and relative to peers, we view Q3 results that were in line to slightly better than forecast as the best of the bunch,” said RBC analyst Drew McReynolds in a note.

Scotiabank analyst Maher Yaghi added that “the telecom industry in Canada remains very challenging for all players, however, Telus has been able to face these pressures” and still deliver growth.

The Big 3 telecom providers — which also include Rogers Communications Inc. and BCE Inc. — have frequently stressed that the market has grown more competitive in recent years, especially after the closing of Quebecor Inc.’s purchase of Freedom Mobile in April 2023.

Hailed as a fourth national carrier, Quebecor has invested in enhancements to Freedom’s network while offering more affordable plans as part of a set of commitments it was mandated by Ottawa to agree to.

The cost of telephone services in September was down eight per cent compared with a year earlier, according to Statistics Canada’s most recent inflation report last month.

“I think competition has been and continues to be, I’d say, quite intense in Canada, and we’ve obviously had to just manage our business the way we see fit,” said French.

Asked how long that environment could last, he said that’s out of Telus’ hands.

“What I can control, though, is how we go to market and how we lead with our products,” he said.

“I think the conditions within the market will have to adjust accordingly over time. We’ve continued to focus on digitization, continued to bring our cost structure down to compete, irrespective of the price and the current market conditions.”

Still, Canada’s telecom regulator continues to warn providers about customers facing more charges on their cellphone and internet bills.

On Tuesday, CRTC vice-president of consumer, analytics and strategy Scott Hutton called on providers to ensure they clearly inform their customers of charges such as early cancellation fees.

That followed statements from the regulator in recent weeks cautioning against rising international roaming fees and “surprise” price increases being found on their bills.

Hutton said the CRTC plans to launch public consultations in the coming weeks that will focus “on ensuring that information is clear and consistent, making it easier to compare offers and switch services or providers.”

“The CRTC is concerned with recent trends, which suggest that Canadians may not be benefiting from the full protections of our codes,” he said.

“We will continue to monitor developments and will take further action if our codes are not being followed.”

French said any initiative to boost transparency is a step in the right direction.

“I can’t say we are perfect across the board, but what I can say is we are absolutely taking it under consideration and trying to be the best at communicating with our customers,” he said.

“I think everyone looking in the mirror would say there’s room for improvement.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.

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TC Energy cuts cost estimate for Southeast Gateway pipeline project in Mexico

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CALGARY – TC Energy Corp. has lowered the estimated cost of its Southeast Gateway pipeline project in Mexico.

It says it now expects the project to cost between US$3.9 billion and US$4.1 billion compared with its original estimate of US$4.5 billion.

The change came as the company reported a third-quarter profit attributable to common shareholders of C$1.46 billion or $1.40 per share compared with a loss of C$197 million or 19 cents per share in the same quarter last year.

Revenue for the quarter ended Sept. 30 totalled C$4.08 billion, up from C$3.94 billion in the third quarter of 2023.

TC Energy says its comparable earnings for its latest quarter amounted to C$1.03 per share compared with C$1.00 per share a year earlier.

The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 95 cents per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:TRP)

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BCE reports Q3 loss on asset impairment charge, cuts revenue guidance

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BCE Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter as it recorded $2.11 billion in asset impairment charges, mainly related to Bell Media’s TV and radio properties.

The company says its net loss attributable to common shareholders amounted to $1.24 billion or $1.36 per share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with a profit of $640 million or 70 cents per share a year earlier.

On an adjusted basis, BCE says it earned 75 cents per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of 81 cents per share in the same quarter last year.

“Bell’s results for the third quarter demonstrate that we are disciplined in our pursuit of profitable growth in an intensely competitive environment,” BCE chief executive Mirko Bibic said in a statement.

“Our focus this quarter, and throughout 2024, has been to attract higher-margin subscribers and reduce costs to help offset short-term revenue impacts from sustained competitive pricing pressures, slow economic growth and a media advertising market that is in transition.”

Operating revenue for the quarter totalled $5.97 billion, down from $6.08 billion in its third quarter of 2023.

BCE also said it now expects its revenue for 2024 to fall about 1.5 per cent compared with earlier guidance for an increase of zero to four per cent.

The company says the change comes as it faces lower-than-anticipated wireless product revenue and sustained pressure on wireless prices.

BCE added 33,111 net postpaid mobile phone subscribers, down 76.8 per cent from the same period last year, which was the company’s second-best performance on the metric since 2010.

It says the drop was driven by higher customer churn — a measure of subscribers who cancelled their service — amid greater competitive activity and promotional offer intensity. BCE’s monthly churn rate for the category was 1.28 per cent, up from 1.1 per cent during its previous third quarter.

The company also saw 11.6 per cent fewer gross subscriber activations “due to more targeted promotional offers and mobile device discounting compared to last year.”

Bell’s wireless mobile phone average revenue per user was $58.26, down 3.4 per cent from $60.28 in the third quarter of the prior year.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:BCE)

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