Canada’s death toll from the novel coronavirus pandemic has now surpassed 13,000, according to updated public health data released on Thursday.
The milestone comes amid another 126 deaths reportedly linked to the virus, which pushes the national death toll to 13,109. Thursday’s fatalities now stand as the highest daily reported death toll in seven months, after 139 more deaths were reported on June 4.
Another 6,738 new cases of COVID-19 were also announced by health authorities Thursday, raising Canada’s total infections to 441,705. To date, over 355,000 patients have since recovered from the virus, however, while another 15.9 million tests have been administered.
Thursday’s grim milestone comes just 11 days after the country’s previous one, in which COVID-19 deaths surpassed the 12,000-mark.
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Several new announcements on Thursday also came amid the rise in cases, deaths and hospitalizations in Canadian communities.
In a press conference, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that his government would be footing the bill over the costs of the coronavirus vaccine, including the costs of supplies to administer them.
The announcement comes just hours after a first ministers meeting, in which the prime minister was expected to address the long-term health-care funding with the country’s premiers.
0:39 Coronavirus: Procurement minister confirms COVID-19 vaccines to arrive in Canada on Monday
Coronavirus: Procurement minister confirms COVID-19 vaccines to arrive in Canada on Monday
“The meeting of today gave us the opportunity to talk about our work in common to fight this pandemic and what we’re doing to help Canadians and Canadian businesses during this crisis,” said Trudeau, who noted again that the vaccine would be completely free for all Canadians.
Premiers were quick to express disappointment Thursday however after the prime minister did not agree to the premiers’ demands of another $28 billion in funding each year for annual federal transfers for health care. The government has already spent hundreds of billions to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as previously directing $25 billion in funding to provinces and territories to boost their health systems, among other things.
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The prime minister did agree with ministers’ sentiments to increase federal health funding, but said that he would be willing to address the issue once the pandemic is over.
Trudeau also announced a new “pan-Canadian” program to address any injuries from the vaccine, but stressed that the Health-Canada approved Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine was safe and effective.
“After being vaccinated, it’s common to have mild and harmless side effects — this is the body’s natural response, as it’s working to build immunity against a disease. However, it is also possible for someone to have a serious adverse reaction to a vaccine,” read a statement from the Public Health Agency of Canada which announced the program.
“The chances of this are extremely rare — less than one in a million — and we have a duty to help if this occurs.”
“This has been a wonderful week for Canadians. We are going to have vaccines in this country on Monday,” said Anita Anand while speaking during question period in the House of Commons Thursday.
Pfizer’s vaccine was only approved Wednesday by Health Canada, with government officials announcing that it would begin rolling out to priority groups “within days.”
1:32 Coronavirus: Canadian military official says they are focused on security of vaccine supply chain
Coronavirus: Canadian military official says they are focused on security of vaccine supply chain
Several other vaccine candidates are still being reviewed by Health Canada, including ones from Moderna, AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson, though it is still unclear if those treatments would be approved by the end of this year.
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Virus cases continue to reach record numbers across Canada, with Ontario hitting a new daily high of 1,983 more cases Thursday. Another 35 deaths were also reported, raising the provincial death toll to 3,871.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford said the province would begin to administer its first shots of the Pfizer vaccine at hospitals in Toronto and Ottawa Tuesday. According to retired general Rick Hillier, who is heading Ontario’s vaccination program, a total of 6,000 doses would arrive Monday to be split between Toronto and Ottawa, while another 90,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine was expected to arrive in province over the course of December.
1:50 Coronavirus: Canadian military official says first COVID-19 vaccine could arrive Monday
Coronavirus: Canadian military official says first COVID-19 vaccine could arrive Monday
Hillier also noted on Thursday that Moderna’s approval was not going to be “far behind the Pfizer approval” and that expected it to be approved for use in Canada by the end of December for initial use in long-term care home sites.
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Quebec added another 1,842 cases on Thursday as well as 33 more deaths. The province, which has been the hardest hit part of Canada in terms of both virus deaths and cases, also faced scrutiny Thursday over how its long-term care system fared during initial on-set of the pandemic.
According to a new report from Ombudsman Marie Rinfret, Quebec’s system failed to ensure long-term care home residents’ safety during the initial spread of the virus.
Alberta reported 1,566 more cases and another 13 deaths linked to COVID-19. Health authorities in the province also announced they would start distributing their initial supply of 3,900 vaccines next week to front-line health-care workers.
Saskatchewan reported 324 more cases and Manitoba another 292, raising their infection totals to 11,223 and 19,947, respectively.
British Columbia added another 722 cases of the virus Thursday, raising its total confirmed caseload to 39,696. Another 364 cases are considered “epi-linked” which are patients with symptoms and are close contacts of confirmed cases, but were never tested.
7:46 Coronavirus: BioNTech CFO on vaccine shipments, doses Canadians can expect
Coronavirus: BioNTech CFO on vaccine shipments, doses Canadians can expect
In Atlantic Canada, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia both added four new virus cases while Newfoundland and Labrador reported just one additional infection. P.E.I. and all of the territories did not report any cases Thursday during their daily updates.
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A total of 69,496,000 cases of the novel coronavirus have been diagnosed worldwide according to a tally kept by Johns Hopkins University. To date, the virus has claimed the lives of more than 1,579,000, with the United States, Brazil and India continuing to lead in both cases and deaths.
— With files from The Canadian Press and Global News’ Amanda Connolly and Rachel Gilmore
TORONTO – Roots Corp. may have built its brand on all things comfy and cosy, but its CEO says activewear is now “really becoming a core part” of the brand.
The category, which at Roots spans leggings, tracksuits, sports bras and bike shorts, has seen such sustained double-digit growth that Meghan Roach plans to make it a key part of the business’ future.
“It’s an area … you will see us continue to expand upon,” she told analysts on a Friday call.
The Toronto-based retailer’s push into activewear has taken shape over many years and included several turns as the official designer and supplier of Team Canada’s Olympic uniform.
But consumers have had plenty of choice when it comes to workout gear and other apparel suited to their sporting needs. On top of the slew of athletic brands like Nike and Adidas, shoppers have also gravitated toward Lululemon Athletica Inc., Alo and Vuori, ramping up competition in the activewear category.
Roach feels Roots’ toehold in the category stems from the fit, feel and following its merchandise has cultivated.
“Our product really resonates with (shoppers) because you can wear it through multiple different use cases and occasions,” she said.
“We’ve been seeing customers come back again and again for some of these core products in our activewear collection.”
Her remarks came the same day as Roots revealed it lost $5.2 million in its latest quarter compared with a loss of $5.3 million in the same quarter last year.
The company said the second-quarter loss amounted to 13 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Aug. 3, the same as a year earlier.
In presenting the results, Roach reminded analysts that the first half of the year is usually “seasonally small,” representing just 30 per cent of the company’s annual sales.
Sales for the second quarter totalled $47.7 million, down from $49.4 million in the same quarter last year.
The move lower came as direct-to-consumer sales amounted to $36.4 million, down from $37.1 million a year earlier, as comparable sales edged down 0.2 per cent.
The numbers reflect the fact that Roots continued to grapple with inventory challenges in the company’s Cooper fleece line that first cropped up in its previous quarter.
Roots recently began to use artificial intelligence to assist with daily inventory replenishments and said more tools helping with allocation will go live in the next quarter.
Beyond that time period, the company intends to keep exploring AI and renovate more of its stores.
It will also re-evaluate its design ranks.
Roots announced Friday that chief product officer Karuna Scheinfeld has stepped down.
Rather than fill the role, the company plans to hire senior level design talent with international experience in the outdoor and activewear sectors who will take on tasks previously done by the chief product officer.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, are set to resume today as a strike that has stopped most services drags into a second week.
No timeline has been set for the length of the negotiations, but Joe McCann, president of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they are willing to stay there as long as it takes, even if talks drag on all night.
About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people unable to navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last Tuesday, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.
Hundreds of drivers rallied outside TransLink’s head office earlier this week, calling for the transportation provider to intervene in the dispute with Transdev, which was contracted to oversee HandyDART service.
Transdev said earlier this week that it will provide a reply to the union’s latest proposal on Thursday.
A statement from the company said it “strongly believes” that their employees deserve fair wages, and that a fair contract “must balance the needs of their employees, clients and taxpayers.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
MONTREAL – Travel company Transat AT Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter compared with a profit a year earlier as its revenue edged lower.
The parent company of Air Transat says it lost $39.9 million or $1.03 per diluted share in its quarter ended July 31.
The result compared with a profit of $57.3 million or $1.49 per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue in what was the company’s third quarter totalled $736.2 million, down from $746.3 million in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Transat says it lost $1.10 per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of $1.10 per share a year earlier.
Transat chief executive Annick Guérard says demand for leisure travel remains healthy, as evidenced by higher traffic, but consumers are increasingly price conscious given the current economic uncertainty.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
