OTTAWA —
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced that the federal government will be extending the military deployments to long-term care homes in Ontario and Quebec until June 26. The government will also be adding new health screening procedures for Canadians who are travelling by air.
As of mid-April, trained teams of Canadian Armed Forces personnel have been deployed to some hard-hit long-term care homes in Quebec and Ontario, where major outbreaks of COVID-19 have occurred. There are currently more than 1,000 members deployed, and discussions have been ongoing as to how long their mission will continue, or evolve.
“Our women and men in uniform are doing a remarkable job. Their help is still needed, so we’re making sure that our elders continue to have this vital support,” Trudeau said on Friday.
The deployment into these homes sparked two damning reports into the conditions inside some of these facilities, prompting outrage and disgust from political leaders and the families who have loved ones living in these care homes.
In Canada, 82 per cent of all COVID-19 deaths are linked to outbreaks in seniors’ homes. More than two dozen military members tested positive after spending time inside one of these facilities.
The extra help inside long-term care homes is just one aspect of what the military is calling “Operation LASER.” Canadian Rangers have also been deployed to communities across Canada to help with on-the-ground COVID-19 efforts.
TEMPERATURE SCREENINGS AT AIRPORTS
The prime minister also announced that the government will be mandating temperature screening for air passengers. This is being done in a “phased approach,” Trudeau said, starting first for those travelling to Canada, then for those travelling from Canada, and eventually for those traveling within Canada.
“A passenger who has a fever will not be permitted to board their flight. Employees in the secured areas of airports will also be required to have their temperature checked,” Trudeau said. “This screening will add yet another layer of protection.”
Around the same time that the military were sent into seniors’ homes, the government decided to require all air passengers to wear non-medical masks or a face covering that goes over their mouth and nose, or risk being denied boarding.
Airlines have already implemented additional cleaning and physical distancing measures, although maintaining the recommended space between people is not always possible aboard an aircraft.
