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Canada’s pandemic response is rapidly shifting toward “learning to live with the virus” — where COVID-19 is eventually treated like other seasonal illnesses, surveillance is massively scaled back and public health measures are widely lifted.
But as some provinces move closer to easing restrictions after facing the deadliest month of the pandemic since COVID-19 vaccines became widely available, there appears to be a dramatic divide on what living with the virus actually means — and how it will work.
“What we need to do going forward, as we emerge out of this Omicron wave, is recognize this virus is not going to disappear,” she said. “We do need to get back to some normalcy.”
But even with record-high hospitalizations and ICU admissions that are only now beginning to show signs of declining nationally, public health officials and politicians across the country have already embraced this new pandemic strategy as they gear up to lift restrictions.
A nurse attends to a patient in the intensive care unit of Humber River Hospital, in Toronto, on Jan. 25. Record-high hospitalizations and ICU admissions are only now beginning to show signs of declining nationally. (Evan Mitsui/CBC)
Saskatchewan set to lift all restrictions
Saskatchewan pivoted to living with the virus on Thursday by announcing further limits to PCR testing, ending the sharing of daily COVID-19 data and stopping the investigation of most outbreaks outside of hospitals and long-term care.
The shift came after Premier Scott Moe released a letter last Saturday lending support to protesters in Ottawa demanding an end to all vaccine mandates or a change in government, while also inaccurately claiming “vaccination is not reducing transmission.”
Moe’s comments are a huge shift in messaging from what he said just a few months ago, when the premier openly criticized the unvaccinated and imposed mandatory masking and proof of vaccination policies during a devastating fourth wave.
“As a government, we have been patient with those who have chosen to remain unvaccinated,” he said on Sept. 16. “But the time for patience is over.”
Fast forward to today, and while Saskatchewan has left current restrictions like mask mandates and vaccine certificates in place for now, Moe has hinted they won’t last long — and he’s not alone.
“For better or for worse, this is what’s going to happen across the whole country,” said Dr. Alexander Wong, an infectious diseases physician at Regina General Hospital and associate professor at the University of Saskatchewan.
“The question is, why are we in such a rush to do all of this? It’s clearly political.”
WATCH | Saskatchewan premier says COVID-19 restrictions ‘ending very soon’:
Sask. premier says COVID-19 restrictions ‘ending very soon’
2 days ago
Duration 2:01
Sask. Premier Scott Moe says all provincial COVID-19 restrictions, including proof-of-vaccination and mask mandates, will be “ending very soon,” but health experts say it’s too early to drop such precautions. 2:01
Alberta ready to reopen when hospitalizations drop
“On our COVID ward right now, our hospital is full to the rafters,” said Dr. Lynora Saxinger, an infectious diseases physician and associate professor at the University of Alberta in Edmonton.
“And I think at this point talking about, ‘Well we’re just going to go back to normal,’ it doesn’t feel normal yet and I think we do need a bit more of a cushion.”
Saxinger said there is a “necessary transition” that will occur with the pandemic where Canada will move away from COVID-19 case counting, containing outbreaks and trying to find each case — but whether that should happen right now is still unclear.
“There comes a point, especially with Omicron which is so pervasive right now, where that’s not really even feasible. It’s like trying to isolate a tree in a burning forest — it doesn’t necessarily make sense anymore,” she said.
“Does this mean we have to accept the burning forest though?”
WATCH | COVID-19 not going away: Alberta’s top doctor:
COVID-19 will not go away, says Alberta’s top doc
2 days ago
Duration 2:07
Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta’s chief medical officer of health, says the province will at some point need to move away from a COVID-19 pandemic response into an endemic phase. 2:07
Saxinger said if Canada is planning on moving to a state where a background level of COVID-19 is expected without doing anything extreme to contain it, there has to be clear benchmarks for what level is acceptable and whether we will need to alter course.
“I really regret when people don’t acknowledge that we might have to change our plan,” she said. “To me right now, the discussion of learning to live with it seems early.”
“We’re taking a cautious approach,” Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Jan. 20, before adding he was “confident” the reopening plan would work and that “the worst is behind us.”
But Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kieran Moore said Thursday while there is a general improvement in the COVID-19 situation, the coming weeks “will continue to be difficult” for the province’s hospital system.
WATCH | Ontario’s top doctor says ‘we’ve let our lives be controlled’ by COVID-19:
‘We’ve let our lives be controlled’ says Ontario’s top doctor amid surge of Omicron cases
9 days ago
Duration 0:19
Dr. Kieran Moore said Thursday that Canadians have lived with a significant amount of fear about COVID-19 but that thinking is going to have to change. 0:19
“We’re not out of the woods yet. We still have to be cautious,” he said. “But we’ve learned significantly from the last two years and I believe we’re in a much better position to learn to live with this virus and to be less fearful of it.”
Moore said Ontario would be “monitoring the situation internationally,” while other officials have also pointed to countries like Denmark and the U.K., which have recently lifted nearly all COVID-19 restrictions, as examples to watch closely for reopening.
“It’s important to kind of keep an eye on people who are a little bit farther ahead than us as we’re making plans,” Saxinger said. “Because you don’t want to have to relearn the lesson that’s being learned elsewhere already.”
A nurse gowns up before attending to a patient in the intensive care unit of Humber River Hospital, in Toronto, on Jan. 25, 2022. Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health said while there is a general improvement in the COVID-19 situation, the coming weeks “will continue to be difficult” for the hospital system. (Evan Mitsui/CBC)
But directly comparing Canada to countries with completely different demographics does not provide firm conclusions on what lies ahead here — especially when our vaccination rates are significantly lower.
“That’s the difference between your hospitalizations not crushing you,” Wong said.
Too early to ‘declare victory’
World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesu warned Tuesday against the trend gaining traction worldwide to ease restrictions due to public pressure and pandemic fatigue, and cautioned that Omicron should not be underestimated.
“We are concerned that a narrative has taken hold in some countries that because of vaccines — and because of Omicron’s high transmissibility and lower severity — preventing transmission is no longer possible and no longer necessary,” he said at a press conference.
“Nothing could be further from the truth. It’s premature for any country either to surrender or to declare victory. This virus is dangerous and it continues to evolve before our very eyes.”
Timothy Caulfield, Canada Research Chair in health law and policy at the University of Alberta, said learning to live with the virus shouldn’t mean immediately lifting all public health measures going forward, adding we need to “bring the public along with us” and continue to watch the virus closely in the population.
“It doesn’t mean we’re going to go back to the state of normalcy and COVID is just going to be background noise in our lives,” he said. “It means that we’re constantly going to have to be vigilant.”
Tim Houston, who is seeking a second term as Nova Scotia premier, said he had no plans to invite Poilievre to join him on the campaign ahead of the Nov. 26 provincial election. He explained the provincial Progressive Conservatives have no formal ties with the Tories in Ottawa — and he made a point of saying he is not a member of the federal party. Experts say it also is because the latest polls suggest Atlantic Canadians have not warmed to Poilievre. (Nov. 5, 2024)
CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — It has been a rough few days for Clemson coach Dabo Swinney. First, his 19th-ranked Tigers lost to Louisville on Saturday night, then he was told he couldn’t vote Tuesday at his polling place.
Swinney, whose given name is William, explained that the voting system had locked him out, saying a “William Swinney” had already voted last week. Swinney said it was his oldest son, Will, and not him.
“They done voted me out of the state,” Swinney said. “We’re 6-2 and 5-1 (in the Atlantic Coast Conference), man. They done shipped me off.”
Dabo Swinney had to complete a paper ballot and was told there will be a hearing on Friday to resolve the issue.
“I was trying to do my best and be a good citizen and go vote,” he said. “Sometimes doing your best ain’t good enough. You have to keep going though, keep figuring it out.”
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EDMONTON – The judge leading a fatality inquiry into the knockout death of a boxer is recommending changes to how the sport is regulated and how head injuries are monitored.
Timothy Hague, who was 34, competed in a boxing match licensed by the Edmonton Combative Sports Commission in June 2017 when his opponent, Adam Braidwood, knocked him unconscious.
Hague came to and was able to walk to the dressing room, where he vomited, and was then taken to hospital where he underwent surgery for a large brain bleed.
His condition did not improve, care was withdrawn and Hague died two days after the fight.
Justice Carrie Sharpe with Alberta’s provincial court made 14 recommendations, including that combat sports be overseen by a provincial authority instead of a patchwork of municipal bodies and that there be concussion spotters at every event.
She also recommends that if a fighter receives a blow to the head in a technical knockout, they must provide a brain scan to prove they are fit to compete again.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
