Canadians stuck abroad after testing positive for COVID-19 during a trip are warning others who are travelling during the Omicron wave to anticipate travel disruptions that could cost thousands of dollars and keep them away from home for much longer than expected.
While the ordeal can force the rescheduling of return flights, many Canadians say they also have to deal with the unexpected costs of additional accommodations, food and multiple PCR tests while isolating internationally.
Some also warn that the rules on how to return to Canada after testing positive are confusing and hard to navigate while abroad.
CTVNews.ca asked Canadians travelling abroad who tested positive and have been required to isolate at their own expense to share their stories. The responses were emailed to CTVNews.ca and have not all been independently verified.
Ontario resident Paula Bass has been stuck in Los Angeles for more than two weeks after testing positive for COVID-19 on Dec. 29 following a trip to visit family.
According to the federal government, Canadians must wait until the 15th day after their positive test result to return to Canada to avoid being fined $5,000 per traveller (plus surcharges). Starting Jan. 15, Canadians must only wait until the 11th day after a positive test result. If they have symptoms without a positive result, they must wait until the symptoms have ended and have a valid negative pre-entry test result.
While Bass says the travel disruption allowed her to spend extra time with her 89-year-old mother, she says the ordeal cost her over US$3,000 that she had not anticipated for.
If everything goes well, Bass is expected to return to Toronto Thursday afternoon.
Brennan Watson, who lives in Milverton, Ont., says he tested positive for COVID-19 while visiting friends in Ireland over the holidays. He was supposed to return to Canada Dec. 29 but due to isolation requirements there, Watson is currently still in Ireland and is expected to return home on Friday.
While he was able to safely isolate at a friends’ place in Northern Ireland, he had to incur the cost of changing his flight, which was roughly an extra CA$2,000.
Florence Belair told CTVNews.ca that her father and brother came to visit her in Florida earlier this month. They took the mandatory PCR test for their return trip to Montreal, however, Belair says they did not receive their positive results until they were already on their connecting flight to Chicago.
“They are now stuck in Chicago, forced to isolate in quarantine until Jan. 24. They have to rebook their flight, as well as pay for a hotel room for the entire 12 days,” she said.
The federal government requires all travellers to take a molecular test within 72 hours of the scheduled departure time of their flight to Canada.
If they have a connecting flight, the test must be taken within 72 hours of the scheduled departure time of the last direct flight to Canada to avoid having to quarantine mid trip. Because of this, the government says Canadians may need to schedule the molecular test in their transit city.
This means that all travellers coming back into Canada will have to take a molecular test in a country other than Canada, before their scheduled departure.
In addition to the pre-departure tests, the federal government has imposed randomized on-arrival testing requirements for air and land travellers coming from outside of Canada due to concerns over the Omicron variant.
This policy requires any travellers entering the country to be tested upon arrival—either at the airport or in some cases given a take-home test—and isolate until they receive a negative result, with the exception of travelling from the U.S.
On Dec. 15, the federal government reinstated its non-essential travel advisory, calling on all Canadians regardless of vaccination status to avoid international travel due to the rapid spread of the Omicron variant.
“Many foreign governments are implementing strict travel restrictions due to spread of the Omicron variant and international transportation options may be limited. As a result, you may have difficulty returning to Canada, or may have to remain abroad for an indeterminate period,” the government warns in the advisory.
WHEN ONE TRAVELLER TESTS POSITIVE AND THE OTHER IS NEGATIVE
Rafael Luz and his wife travelled to New Haven, Connecticut to visit friends in December.
“Since the plan was easy, drive from Toronto to New Haven and back, it seemed like a safe plan, especially by avoiding airports and airplanes,” Luz said.
To return to Canada, they got PCR tests on Dec. 30. Luz said they received the results a few days later and found out that his wife was positive for COVID-19 and had to wait two weeks in order to return. However, Luz was negative.
Luz said he got two tests done on Jan. 3, one showing a negative result and the other, a positive one.
“With this, my wife would be able to return to Canada on the 12th, while I would only be able to return on the 16th,” he explained.
Luz said they are waiting until they are both cleared to return to Canada together. Since neither of them have symptoms and are both fully vaccinated, the U.S. Centres for Disease Control does not require them to quarantine while in New Haven unless they develop symptoms.
Sarah Paul of White Rock, B.C. is currently isolating with her 11-year-old son in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico. They left, with eight other people, for a two-week holiday on Dec. 26.
“We were very careful while away, following all protocols and precautions,” Paul said. “We took our PCR tests as required, and everyone tested negative, except for our 11-year-old son.”
“We made the decision as a family that everyone, my husband and daughter included, would fly home, and that I would be the one to stay behind with my son and isolate,” she added.
Paul said they are “completely fine” and her son has now fully recovered, after only having “very mild symptoms of congestion and stomach ache.”
While Paul said they were aware that testing positive “was always a possibility,” she says the experience of having to sort out what to do afterwards while abroad has been “very stressful.”
If Canadians are symptom-free after testing positive abroad, the federal government states that they can provide proof of a positive COVID-19 molecular test take two weeks prior to returning home, instead of a negative one.
However, Paul says she received an email from a North American company that specializes in medical tourism in Puerto Vallarta that said her son would need to be retested before leaving, and in the event that he tests positive again, he would need a doctor’s letter confirming that he is fully recovered.
Paul said she was told that the airline would require this before they’d allow him to board the flight. However, she says the airline seems “reluctant to answer these questions due to liability issues.”
“It is disorienting and unsettling to not really know what is expected of us, or to have an answer to give to our 11-year-old son, when he asks when he will be allowed to go home to Canada,” Paul said.
THE IMPORTANCE OF TRAVEL INSURANCE
Martin Firestone, president of Travel Secure, a Toronto-based travel insurance brokerage, told CTVNews.ca that Canadians can prepare for the possibility of staying abroad if they test positive for COVID-19 by purchasing an insurance policy that covers travel interruptions.
“The fear of testing positive and not being able to get back on a plane to head home is a serious concern,” Firestone said in a telephone interview Thursday, adding that insurers have recognized this and have adjusted policies accordingly.
Firestone said the average insurance policy with travel interruption will cover roughly $200 a day per person for 14 days to a maximum of $2,800, plus $500 towards the cost of purchasing new airfare.
While it may not seem like a lot of money, Firestone said it is “better than nothing.”
He noted that an insurance policy that includes trip interruption will cost approximately $50 to $75 a person, with the option to extend coverage should they need to stay longer at their destination to isolate at no additional cost.
In addition, Firestone said most insurance policies already cover medical expenses related to COVID-19 should someone become severely ill or need hospitalization abroad.
“That has been a savior for many people who had the foresight to buy it prior to going on their trip,” he said.
Firestone stressed the importance of travellers being “properly covered” if they plan to vacation during the Omicron wave.
“If you didn’t buy it, you have to cover all your expenses, buy new airfare home, and needless to say, that can add up to a tremendous expense depending on what resort you’re in,” he said.
Edited by CTVNews.ca producer Sonja Puzic
Correction:
This story was updated to clarify that entry requirements for travellers coming to Canada include a negative molecular COVID-19 test, which may include, but is not limited to, a PCR test.
BATHURST, N.B. – RCMP in New Brunswick say a weekend ground search for evidence related to the disappearance of a teenage girl in 2021 didn’t reveal any new information.
In an emailed statement, the RCMP said 20 people participated in the search for evidence in the case of Madison Roy-Boudreau of Bathurst.
The release said the search occurred in the Middle River area, just south of the girl’s hometown.
Police have said the 14-year-old’s disappearance is being treated as a homicide investigation.
The RCMP said the search “did not reveal any new information regarding the circumstances of her disappearance.”
There are no plans for another search until police receive a tip or a lead pointing to a new search area.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
VICTORIA – A middle school in Victoria was forced into a lockdown after a man entered the building without permission, and police say they had to use a stun gun to make an arrest.
Victoria police say officers received multiple calls around noon on Monday of an unknown male entering Central Middle School, leading staff to set off emergency procedures that put the building under lockdown.
Police say its emergency response team arrived within minutes and found the suspect, who “appeared to be in a drug-induced state,” in the school’s library.
A statement from police says the suspect resisted arrest, and officers had to use a Taser to subdue the man.
He’s being held by police and has been assessed by emergency medical staff.
Police say the man was not armed and there were no continuing safety concerns for students and staff following the arrest.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Former B.C. Green leader Andrew Weaver knows what it’s like to form a minority government with the NDP, but says such a deal to create the province’s next administration is less likely this time than seven years ago.
Weaver struck a power-sharing agreement that resulted in John Horgan’s NDP minority government in 2017, but said in an interview Monday there is now more animosity between the two parties.
Neither the NDP nor the B.C. Conservatives secured a majority in Saturday’s election, raising the prospect of a minority NDP government if Leader David Eby can get the support of two Green legislators.
Manual recounts in two ridings could also play an important role in the outcome, which will not be known for about a week.
Weaver, who is no longer a member of the Greens, endorsed a Conservative candidate in his home riding.
He said Eby would be in a better position to negotiate if Furstenau, who lost her seat, stepped aside as party leader.
“I think Mr. Eby would be able to have fresh discussions with fresh new faces around the table, (after) four years of political sniping … between Sonia and the NDP in the B.C. legislature,” he said.
He said Furstenau’s loss put the two elected Greens in an awkward position because parties “need the leader in the legislature.”
Furstenau could resign as leader or one of the elected Greens could step down and let her run in a byelection in their riding, he said.
“They need to resolve that issue sooner rather than later,” he said.
The Green victories went to Rob Botterell in Saanich North and the Islands and Jeremy Valeriote in West Vancouver-Sea to Sky.
Neither Botterell nor Valeriote have held seats in the legislature before, Weaver noted.
“It’s not like in 2017 when, you know, I had been in the (legislature) for four years already,” Weaver said, adding that “the learning curve is steep.”
Sanjay Jeram, chair of undergraduate studies in political science at Simon Fraser University, said he doesn’t think it’ll be an “easygoing relationship between (the NDP and Greens) this time around.”
“I don’t know if Eby and Furstenau have the same relationship — or the potential to have the same relationship — as Horgan and Weaver did,” he said. “I think their demands will be a little more strict and it’ll be a little more of a cold alliance than it was in 2017 if they do form an alliance.”
Horgan and Weaver shook hands on a confidence-and-supply agreement before attending a rugby match, where they were spotted sitting together before the deal became public knowledge.
Eby said in his election-night speech that he had already reached out to Furstenau and suggested common “progressive values” between their parties.
Furstenau said in her concession speech that her party was poised to play a “pivotal role” in the legislature.
Botterell said in an election-night interview that he was “totally supportive of Sonia” and he would “do everything I can to support her and the path forward that she chooses to take because that’s her decision.”
The Green Party of Canada issued a news release Monday, congratulating the candidates on their victories, noting Valeriote’s win is the first time that a Green MLA has been elected outside of Vancouver Island.
“Now, like all British Columbians we await the final seat count to know which party will have the best chance to form government. Let’s hope that the Green caucus has a pivotal role,” the release said, echoing Furstenau’s turn of phrase.
The final results of the election won’t be known until at least next week.
Elections BC says manual recounts will be held on Oct. 26 to 28 in two ridings where NDP candidates led B.C. Conservatives by fewer than 100 votes after the initial count ended on Sunday.
The outcomes in Surrey City Centre and Juan de Fuca-Malahat could determine who forms government.
The election’s initial results have the NDP elected or leading in 46 ridings, and the B.C. Conservatives in 45, both short of the 47 majority mark in B.C.’s 93-seat legislature.
If the Conservatives win both of the recount ridings and win all other ridings where they lead, Rustad will win with a one-seat majority.
If the NDP holds onto at least one of the ridings where there are recounts, wins the other races it leads, and strikes a deal with the Greens, they would have enough numbers to form a minority government.
But another election could also be on the cards, since the winner will have to nominate a Speaker, reducing the government’s numbers in the legislature by one vote.
Elections BC says it will also be counting about 49,000 absentee and mail-in ballots from Oct. 26 to 28.
The NDP went into the election with 55 ridings, representing a comfortable majority in what was then an 87-seat legislature.
Jeram, with Simon Fraser University, said though the counts aren’t finalized, the Conservatives were the big winners in the election.
“They weren’t really a not much of a formal party until not that long ago, and to go from two per cent of the vote to winning 45 or more seats in the B.C. provincial election is just incredible,” he said in an interview Monday.
Jeram said people had expected Eby to call an election after he took over from John Horgan in 2022, and if he had, he doesn’t think there would have been the same result.
He said the B.C. Conservative’s popularity grew as a result of the decision of the BC Liberals to rebrand as BC United and later drop out.
“Had Eby called an election before that really shook out, and maybe especially before (Pierre) Poilievre, kind of really had the wind in his sails and started to grow, I think he could have won the majority for sure.”
He said he wasn’t surprised by the results of the election, saying polls were fairly accurate.
“Ultimately, it really was a result that we saw coming for a while, since the moment that BC United withdrew and put their support behind the conservatives, I think this was the outcome that was expected.”
— With files from Darryl Greer
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
