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Coronavirus: What's happening in Canada and around the world on Wednesday – CBC News
The latest:
Federal Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos says Canada is in crisis when it comes to COVID-19 PCR testing capacity, even as the federal government struggles to make good on its promise to deliver 140 million rapid tests to provinces by the end of the month.
Duclos says access to PCR tests in provinces is a crisis, and that’s why at-home rapid tests will be such an important tool to combat the Omicron wave of COVID-19.
But some provinces have flagged that shipments of those vital rapid tests from the federal government have been slow to arrive.
“Alberta Health has learned that the expected supply of at-home rapid COVID-19 tests has been delayed from the federal government and manufacturers,” Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta’s chief medical officer of health, said Tuesday on Twitter.
Filomena Tassi, minister of public services and procurement, acknowledged the difficulties in obtaining COVID-19 rapid tests due to the high demand over December, but stated the federal government was working hard to acquire more, and said there would be 140 million tests going out to the provinces in the month of January. 2:01
In Ontario for example, fewer than 0.3 per cent of the rapid tests committed to the province in January have been delivered so far, and there is no delivery scheduled for about 80 per cent of them.
However, Ontario Education Minister Stephen Lecce announced on Wednesday that students and staff in Ontario schools and child-care settings will each get two rapid COVID-19 tests after schools return to in-person learning on Monday.
Tests will be distributed starting next week first to staff, then to children in daycares and students in public elementary schools, followed by high school students.
Provincial officials say more tests will be provided when supply allows.
Federal Procurement Minister Filomena Tassi says the provinces’ demand for the tests has increased drastically since last year, while the market has become very competitive. She says the government is working with 14 suppliers to secure the tests that were promised by the end of the month.
Manitoba Health says it’s been told by Ottawa the province is allotted five million tests a month. A recent shipping notice confirmed it would get a total of 700,000 devices for January. It has already received 132,000.
“The premier and prime minister also had discussions in December and again this week, in which the premier stressed the need for additional rapid tests for Manitoba,” said the department in a statement.
N.S., Yukon shift approach to testing
In Nova Scotia, Premier Tim Houston said the province is distributing 830,000 rapid tests a week, which he said is almost a test for every person in the province.
Chief Medical Officer Dr. Robert Strang said there continues to be confusion and anger around the changes in the province’s testing strategy since the Omicron variant arrived in Nova Scotia. He said given the amount of virus in the province, there is no need to identify every case of COVID-19.
Strang said rapid tests need to be used more efficiently, as there are currently just over one million tests in the province.
“We ask for your patience while we rebuild our testing supply,” he said, adding that 3.6 million more tests were on the way.
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston says the province, which was once a leader in COVID-19 testing, has had to change its testing protocols, based on availability and need. 2:37
In Yukon, officials said on Wednesday that they have also had to shift their approach to testing due to the rapid rise in cases. For now, PCR tests will be available only to high-risk individuals with symptoms.
For everyone else, “The most important thing that you need to know is that if you have symptoms, you should assume you have COVID-19 and follow the recommendations for isolation,” said Yukon Health Minister Tracy-Anne McPhee.
The territory says it received a shipment of 50,000 rapid antigen tests from the federal government on Saturday and that they are being made available at a drive-thru location in Whitehorse. McPhee said Yukon is expecting to receive more rapid tests in the coming weeks.
-From The Canadian Press and CBC News, last updated at 7 p.m. ET
What’s happening across Canada
Homeless shelters across Canada have seen more people seek a place to stay during extreme cold temperatures, but dealing with crowded spaces is even more challenging with the spread of the Omicron variant. 1:40
With lab-based testing capacity deeply strained and increasingly restricted, experts say true case counts are likely far higher than reported. Hospitalization data at the regional level is also evolving, with several provinces saying they will report figures that separate the number of people in hospital because of COVID-19 from those in hospital for another medical issue who also test positive for COVID-19.
For more information on what is happening in your community — including details on outbreaks, testing capacity and local restrictions — click through to the regional coverage below.
You can also read more from the Public Health Agency of Canada, which provides a detailed look at every region — including seven-day average test positivity rates — in its daily epidemiological updates.
In Central Canada, health officials in Quebec on Wednesday reported 52 additional deaths and a total of 2,877 hospitalizations. The number of people in the province’s intensive care units stood at 263, according to an update posted online. The province reported 8,351 additional lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19.
The update comes a day after Premier François Legault became the first leader in Canada to propose a tax on adults who have chosen not to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Speaking on Tuesday, the premier said about 10 per cent of adults in Quebec are unvaccinated, but they represent about 50 per cent of intensive care patients.
“Those who refuse to get their first doses in the coming weeks will have to pay a new health contribution,” Legault said.
In Ontario, health officials reported 46 additional deaths, as well as a total of 3,448 hospitalizations, including 505 in intensive care units, on Wednesday. The education minister announced that kids going back to in-class learning next week will get two new rapid antigen tests.
Saying his government used ‘every minute of the day’ to get kids back to class and ensure their safety, Ontario Education Minister Stephen Lecce outlined the measures put in place during the current two-week school shutdown due to COVID-19. 2:00
The province, which like many other regions has limited access to PCR tests, recorded an additional 9,783 lab-confirmed cases.
In Atlantic Canada, no additional deaths were reported in Newfoundland and Labrador on Wednesday, but the province is expecting hospitalizations to spike in the coming weeks.
Health officials said there were seven hospitalizations across the province and 502 additional lab-confirmed cases. More than 220 additional positives were identified in samples previously sent out of the province for testing, said Dr. Janice Fitzgerald, the province’s chief medical officer of health.
The update in Newfoundland and Labrador comes a day after health officials in New Brunswick urged people to reduce their contacts and step up their precautions in the face of rising COVID-19 cases. The province’s chief epidemiologist said if current trends continue, the province could see 5,500 people testing positive each day for COVID-19 by the end of the month and nearly 220 people in hospital.
As of Wednesday, New Brunswick was reporting 94 hospitalizations — a pandemic high for the province. Ten of those people were being treated in intensive care units. Health officials also reported one additional death and 359 lab-confirmed cases.
Nova Scotia on Wednesday reported one additional death, and 60 hospitalizations — including five people who are in ICU. The province recorded 837 lab-confirmed cases. There is growing concern in the province that patients waiting for long-term care beds are being forced to stay in hospitals due to staff shortages.
Meantime, an initiative to place 20 emergency single-occupancy shelters on church grounds across Nova Scotia is now complete. The 20 heated shelters, which measure 2.5 metres by 2.5 metres, come with a built-in bed, lighting, USB charging ports and smoke and carbon monoxide detectors at a cost to the archdiocese of $11,500 a piece.
In Prince Edward Island, there were seven people in hospital Wednesday, with one person in intensive care. The province also recorded 230 lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19.
Across the North, students in Nunavut will begin the new year with remote instruction, the education minister said.
“Whether it’s provided through our online platform … or through take-home learning packages, remote instruction beginning on Jan. 17 will be assessed and will count toward the final grades,” Education Minister Pamela Gross said.
In Yukon, two people are being treated in hospital with COVID-19. There were 70 new cases announced on Wednesday, with active cases in the territory at more than 400.
In the Prairie provinces, Manitoba health officials on Wednesday reported that there were 454 people in hospital due to COVID-19, with 46 people in ICUs. The province also reported 1,478 additional lab-confirmed cases and three new deaths.
In Saskatchewan, health officials on Wednesday reported a total of 121 COVID-19 hospitalizations, no change from Tuesday, with nine cases in intensive care units. The province, which reported no additional COVID-linked deaths, recorded 1,084 additional lab-confirmed cases.
Alberta on Wednesday reported 15 additional deaths and said there were 748 people in hospital with COVID-19 — including 82 people in intensive care. Health officials also reported an additional 6,789 lab-confirmed cases.
The update comes as leaders of Alberta’s largest public- and private-sector unions are calling for drastic lockdown measures immediately to fight the spiralling COVID-19 Omicron variant.
In British Columbia, the Health Ministry on Wednesday reported six additional deaths linked to COVID-19. The province also reported 500 hospitalized with COVID-19, with 102 patients in intensive care units. There were also an additional 2,859 lab-confirmed cases.
–From CBC News, last updated at The Canadian Press, last updated at 7 p.m. ET
What’s happening around the world
Dr. Peter Jüni, scientific director of Ontario’s COVID-19 Science Advisory Table, talks to Andrew Chang about how long immunity may last after acquiring the Omicron variant and its impact on how people may transmit the virus. 2:21
As of Wednesday evening, roughly 315.3 million cases of COVID-19 had been reported worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University. The reported global death toll stood at more than 5.5 million.
The number of new coronavirus infections in the last week jumped by about 55 per cent, although the number of deaths remained stable, the World Health Organization (WHO) said. The agency’s latest report, covering Jan. 3 to 9, said there were about 15 million new COVID-19 cases last week and more than 43,000 deaths. Every world region reported a rise in cases except Africa, where officials saw an 11 per cent drop.
According to WHO’s weekly situation report, the highest number of cases were in:
- The U.S., with more than 4.6 million recorded cases.
- France, with nearly 1.6 million recorded cases.
- The U.K., with more than 1.2 million recorded cases.
The update comes a week after WHO recorded a pandemic high of 9.5 million new infections in a single week.
WHO said the Omicron variant continues to define the pandemic globally and is now crowding out the previously dominant Delta variant. Early studies also show Omicron is less likely to cause severe illness than Delta, and vaccination and a booster still offer strong protection from serious illness, hospitalization and death.
WHO said Omicron has now proven to have a shorter doubling time compared to other variants, with “increasing evidence” that it’s able to evade immunity.
After a steep rise in cases in South Africa when Omicron was first detected, numbers quickly dropped and experts believe the wave has passed. WHO said this week that after a continuous rise of COVID-19 across Africa, cases fell this week for the first time.
Scientists say there are signs Omicron’s wave may have peaked, but they’re still uncertain how the next phase of the pandemic might unfold. WHO noted the Americas reported the highest-ever number of COVID-19 cases this week, with a 78 per cent spike. The Americas also reported 14,000 additional deaths, a 25 per cent increase compared to the previous week.
New cases in Europe rose by 31 per cent, however, the report said weekly deaths continued to decline with over 20,000 new deaths reported, a 10 per cent decrease compared to the previous week.
The biggest jump in COVID-19 infections was noted in Southeast Asia, where cases increased by more than 400 per cent. The numbers of deaths there fell by six per cent.
According to the weekly summary, seven countries in the WHO’s Southeast Asia region reported a case count increase of over 50 per cent — led by India, with 638,872 new recorded cases.
Meanwhile, in the Americas, the Biden administration is increasing federal support for COVID-19 testing for schools in a bid to keep them open amid the Omicron surge. The White House said Wednesday the administration is making a dedicated stream of five million rapid tests and five million lab-based PCR tests available to schools starting this month.
The White House says states can request the tests immediately and the tests will be available for use by the end of the month. The initiative comes after Chicago public schools closed for days amid an impasse between teachers and officials over reopening policies.
The new crop of tests is enough to cover only a small fraction of the more than 50 million students and educators in the nation’s schools.
In Africa, Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi has left isolation just over a week after testing positive for COVID-19 without symptoms, the government said.
South Africa, meanwhile, on Tuesday reported 5,668 additional cases and 119 deaths.
In Europe, Germany should make COVID-19 vaccinations mandatory for all adults, Chancellor Olaf Scholz told parliament on Wednesday, brushing off heckling from opposition lawmakers who accused him of fomenting social divisions.
“With the decision not to get vaccinated, one ultimately is not just making a decision for oneself, but also for 80 million others,” he said of an issue stirring passions around the world as some companies and authorities start to insist on inoculation.
Germany’s Parliament passed a law in December making coronavirus vaccinations compulsory for certain professions from mid-March.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson apologized for attending a “bring your own booze” gathering at his official residence during the U.K.’s first lockdown, as a senior figure in his party and opponents said he should resign.
Denmark is to offer a fourth coronavirus vaccination to vulnerable citizens and will ease restrictions at the end of the week, while Sweden will cut the recommended interval between the second and third jabs to five months from six.
In the Middle East, Saudi Arabia has registered its highest daily number of new infections so far, breaking through 5,000 cases on Wednesday.
In the Asia-Pacific region, India’s Bharat Biotech said on Wednesday a booster shot of its Covaxin COVID-19 vaccine administered six months after the last of two doses neutralizes both the Omicron and Delta variants of the coronavirus.
The northern Chinese city of Tianjin ordered a second round of COVID-19 testing of all 14 million residents Wednesday following the discovery of 97 cases of Omicron during initial screenings that began Sunday.
Residents were asked to remain where they are until the results of all the nucleic acid tests are received, the official Xinhua News Agency said. Xinhua said authorities have carried out almost 12 million tests so far, with 7.8 million samples returned. Infections were first reported on Saturday in the city that is only about an hour from Beijing, which is to host the Winter Olympics beginning Feb. 4.
Meanwhile, in South Korea, officials are turning to additional pharmaceutical tools, authorizing the use of Novavax’s vaccine and preparing to distribute the first of Pfizer’s antiviral pills.
-From Reuters, The Associated Press and CBC News, last updated at 4:30 p.m. ET
News
Just bought a used car? There’s a chance it’s stolen, as thieves exploit weakness in vehicle registrations
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The fight against Canada’s worst-ever auto theft epidemic has largely focused on ramping up inspections at shipping ports, where organized crime groups have exported the overwhelming majority of stolen vehicles.
But criminals are adapting, police say, by increasingly selling hot vehicles in Canada to unsuspecting buyers with little protection, exploiting a weakness in provincial registration systems that veteran investigators argue needs to be fixed.
“The market is so lucrative it’s easy cash,” said Det. Sgt. Greg O’Connor of Peel Regional Police, west of Toronto.
While it is impossible to know what criminals do with all stolen cars and difficult to track shifting trends, police now estimate nearly one-third of stolen vehicles are being resold in Canada, marking a significant increase from just six months ago when the vast majority of vehicles were believed to have been exported.
And often, buyers have no idea.
Derek Crocker bought a used Ford F-150 pickup truck from a dealership in Toronto in 2022. Just a few months later, his own investigation revealed the truck’s vehicle identification number — or VIN — had been replaced, mirroring the VIN of a similar truck registered in Utah.
“The whole reason you buy it from a dealership is so you don’t have to worry about dealing with that sort of thing,” he said.
In retrospect, there were small tells.
After Crocker entered what should have been the truck’s unique VIN in Ford’s app, the function to remotely start the vehicle never worked. The app also listed the vehicle as being located in the United States and indicated a different amount of fuel than his own vehicle tank was holding.
But it wasn’t until his F-150 was in an accident and required body work that the problem with the VIN was revealed. The repair shop ordered parts based on the VIN it saw on the dash. But the parts did not match.
“So I Googled the VIN number that was on my truck, and I found a truck for sale in Utah,” said Crocker.
It turns out that was the true VIN, which thieves had cloned, placing fake VIN stickers with the Utah truck’s VIN on top of the true number for the truck Crocker bought.
VINs are most prominently displayed on a vehicle’s dashboard, as well as on the ownership title. When a vehicle is stolen, the VIN is flagged across North America to prevent it being sold.
But criminals are replacing the VIN plate, often with one from a comparable vehicle that has been totalled, legally exported or one registered in another province or U.S. state. They may go through junkyards, export records or simply walk through a mall parking lot to find a VIN to clone.
In doing so, they re-VIN or “wash” the vehicle of its stolen status.
Crocker called police, who seized the vehicle and returned it to the insurance company of the original owner.
Crocker’s own insurance would not cover his loss because he’d — albeit unknowingly — purchased a stolen vehicle. After a long discussion with the dealership that sold him the stolen truck, his money was returned.
“They did nothing extra,” Crocker said. “They didn’t help me at all.”
How could 2 cars with the same VIN be registered?
Provincial centres that administer vehicle registration, such as ServiceOntario, do not have a system that checks if VINs already exist in other jurisdictions.
“You can have a vehicle registered in one province and the same VIN on a different vehicle registered in another and we need to stop that,” David Adams, president and CEO of Global Automakers of Canada, told a recent auto theft summit in the Greater Toronto Area.
Neither Canada nor the United States has a national vehicle registry. Multiple police agencies are urging federal and provincial governments to create one.
“The reality is this is a national issue. And that’s why a national registry that moves itself beyond any sort of provincial jurisdiction is important in all capacities,” Nick Milinovich, deputy chief of Peel Regional Police, said in an interview.
CBC News asked Ontario’s Ministry of the Solicitor General why the province’s database can’t detect whether the same VIN is actively being used in another province or state.
“If changes to the provincial registration process are required, we won’t hesitate to make them,” it responded in a statement.
How to spot a potentially stolen car for sale
While it is impossible to know precisely how many fraudulently registered stolen vehicles are back on the road, recoveries have surged.
“The number of re-VINS is just blowing through the roof right now,” said O’Connor. “It’s costing drivers, banks, insurance companies big money. It’s a massive problem.”
It is impossible to know the full extent of the illegal economy and the proportion of vehicle exported versus those kept in the country. But police forces across southern Ontario have reported a surge in recoveries of vehicles that have had their VINs altered.
Car buyers are being advised to look at the VIN on the dashboard and the pillar between the front and back driver’s side doors to see if the numbering is bubbling, a sign there may be a sticker on top of the real VIN.
Running the VIN through a paid service like Carfax could also yield key warning signs. For example: a vehicle that records show has been declared salvage after a crash later reappearing undamaged. Or a VIN with a sales and registration history almost exclusively in one province or state suddenly being for sale in another.
If an insurance company discovers a vehicle has a fraudulent VIN, the policy is voided. When police seized Crocker’s truck, insurance would not pay to replace it. He was only able to recover his money when the dealership that sold the stolen truck paid him out.
But police and insurance investigators have begun to warn of a proliferation of re-VINed vehicles being sold exclusively through social media platforms like Instagram.
“If you’re paying cash for that vehicle [in a private sale] or you do a bank transfer,” said O’Connor, “there’s no recourse.”
WATCH | A stolen car is found in Ghana:
CBC’s David Common informs Len Green that his stolen car has been found in Ghana, 8,500 kilometres from Toronto, where it first went missing a year ago.
Registry employees alleged to be in on the crime
Police also allege organized crime has recruited employees at ServiceOntario, the registration centres operated on behalf of the province that offer an array of services, including issuing licences and managing the database of registered vehicles.
At the end of 2023, Toronto police charged seven ServiceOntario employees with a collective 73 charges, including fraud over $5,000, tampering with a vehicle identification number, breach of trust by a public officer and trafficking in identity information.
They allegedly provided an auto theft ring with registered addresses for specific vehicle models. Once stolen, the same employees assisted the ring in “re-VINing” the vehicles.
Fraudulent VINs may never be detected, although Peel police alone have seized more than 50 such vehicles in 2024 alone.
At other times, employees at ServiceOntario have flagged suspicious activity, such as when the same person shows up dozens of times to register different vehicles. That was allegedly the case with Milton Hylton, who was charged with 168 counts of various Criminal Code offences in March.
He was released on bail, pending trial. No charges are yet proven.
WATCH | An alleged repeat re-VINer is arrested:
CBC News takes you inside a police surveillance operation, witnessing an auto theft takedown connected to a growing aspect of the billion-dollar crime. Criminal rings are increasingly selling stolen cars in Canada to car buyers who often have no idea.
According to the warrant used to search his home and requested by Peel Regional Police Const. Gurinder Athwal, the 24-year-old travelled to “multiple ServiceOntario locations throughout the province and fraudulently registered vehicles.” Police say more than 100 vehicles were involved, and describe stolen Dodge Rams, Dodge Durangos and BMWs among them.
CBC News was present at the moment of Hylton’s arrest in Mississauga as multiple undercover police vehicles conducting surveillance moved in.
As investigators searched and then towed his silver Mazda, they say they found documents to register even more vehicles inside.
Hylton had just a few weeks earlier been banned from entering ServiceOntario locations without an appointment, because of suspicions. He was in the company of a woman he identified as his girlfriend. His sister was also arrested days later and now faces 36 charges of uttering forged documents and trafficking of stolen goods.
3rd-party registration being exploited
In a news release, Peel police describe Hylton as using “loopholes in the ServiceOntario procedures that allow ‘authorized’ individuals to conduct third-party transactions.”
While third-party registration is intended for car dealers, provisions for it mean nearly any individual can transfer registration of a vehicle or register a vehicle in another person’s name.
This process is typical in other Canadian provinces, too.
“It’s a huge problem,” said O’Connor. “And that’s how a lot of these vehicles are getting through.”
For instance, the warrant in the Hylton case alleges he transferred vehicle ownerships to both a speciality tool shop in Etobicoke and an automotive exporter in St. Catharines. Neither business authorized the transfers, and both insist Hylton is neither an employee nor known to them.
Were the vehicles in question stolen, the new registration would have detached them from their previous owners. Anyone buying the vehicles would be none the wiser and would have no insurance or other protection if the vehicle’s stolen status was ever uncovered.
Peel police say Hylton sold dozens of vehicles over a year through social media under the Instagram handle “Royalty in the Building.”
That name is associated with Facebook and Instagram accounts where apparent car buyers offer testimonials.
“I called up Milton. I told him I got my money up, I need plates, I need a car. And he got it just like that,” a person said in a testimonial while standing in front of a Honda Civic.
“Got my new SUV, fully loaded. Tints, light, rims, inside’s clean. Everything’s legit,” another person said in a testimonial.
“You give him your cash. You’re on the road. You ain’t got to go to ServiceOntario. You don’t got to do no running around,” said another.
WATCH | Inside a weeks-long auto theft investigation:
CBC’s David Common gets exclusive access inside an auto theft surveillance operation, targeting a suspect who allegedly re-vinned more than 100 stolen vehicles to be resold, sometimes to unsuspecting buyers in Canada.
CBC News spoke with several police and insurance officials from across the Greater Toronto Area about third-party registrations.
Each insisted the loophole needed to be closed to prevent illegal transfers. But none wanted to speak on the record, citing the provincial Ministry of Transportation as a good partner they did not want to publicly besmirch.
Meanwhile, the auto theft problem continues to grow.
In 2022, an unprecedented $1.2 billion worth of vehicles were stolen across the entire country. By 2023, more than $1 billion was lost in just Ontario alone, according to the Équité Association, the national organization charged with reducing insurance fraud.
“It’s one of the top three revenue generators for organized crime,” said Milinovich. “It’s high reward, low risk, and an easy crime.”
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OTTAWA –
A new poll suggests the Liberals have not won over voters with their latest budget, though there is broad support for their plan to build millions of homes.
Just shy of half the respondents to Leger’s latest survey said they had a negative opinion of the federal budget, which was presented last Tuesday.
Only 21 per cent said they had a positive opinion, and one-third of respondents said they didn’t know or preferred not to answer.
Still, 65 per cent of those surveyed said the plan to spend $8.5 billion on housing, aimed at building 3.9 million homes by 2031, is good for the country.
Leger’s poll of 1,522 Canadians last weekend can’t be assigned a margin of error because online surveys are not considered truly random samples.
People in Alberta were most likely to say they had a very negative impression of the budget, with 42 per cent selecting that option compared to 25 per cent across the entire country.
More than half of the people who took the poll said they are in favour of the government’s plans to spend more on energy efficiency, national defence and student-loan forgiveness for health care and education workers.
And 56 per cent said they think the increase to the capital gains tax inclusion rate — a move that’s estimated to raise another $19.4 billion in revenue over the next four years — is a good thing.
The Liberals are billing the change as critical to their plan to improve generational fairness by taxing the ultra-rich.
It has drawn criticism, including from the Canadian Medical Association, which warned on Tuesday that it could affect the country’s ability to recruit and keep physicians.
The budget proposes to make two-thirds of capital gains — the profit made on the sale of assets — taxable, rather than half. For individuals, this would apply to profits above $250,000, but there is no lower threshold for corporations.
The medical association said many doctors will face higher taxes because they have incorporated their practices and used those companies to save for retirement.
While the Liberals are aiming changes to the capital gains tax at younger Canadians including millennials and gen-Zers, Leger’s poll found it had the support of 60 per cent of respondents over the age of 55 — the highest among any age group.
People between 18 and 35 were least likely to support the Liberal plan to spend another $73 billion on defence in the next two decades. Just 45 per cent of respondents in that age group said ramping up defence spending is good for the country, compared with 70 per cent of people over the age of 55.
Leger also asked questions about the country’s fiscal future.
Almost half the respondents, 47 per cent, said they want to see the government cut back on spending and programs to get the budget balanced as quickly as possible.
Just 16 per cent said spending more and running large deficits is the best plan for the next five years, and 14 per cent want to see the government increase taxes to bring the deficit down.
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Alberta’s health ministry says an audit has determined that more than 40 medical clinics in the province are advertising membership fees for services, nearly a year after one such plan landed a Calgary clinic in hot water.
The audit was launched last December. In July, CBC News reported that a medical clinic in Calgary’s Marda Loop district was moving to a membership system and planned to charge $4,800 a year for a two-parent family membership, covering two adults and their dependent children.
The next day, Health Canada said the arrangement at the Marda Loop Medical Clinic equated to patients purchasing “preferential access” and warned Alberta that it could face cuts to federal health transfers if the situation wasn’t handled.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Alberta Health Minister Adriana LaGrange directed Alberta Health to investigate, and the clinic halted its plan for membership fees shortly after.
In December, LaGrange told CBC News that “appropriate action” would be taken if audits determined that violations were found, adding the province would do whatever it took to ensure clinics were in compliance.
The province promised the audits early in the new year. Now, the health ministry says it has conducted interviews to gather information on operations and business models of the clinics, adding this work is ongoing.
“Over 40 clinics in the province [advertise] a membership meant to pay for a defined set of uninsured services, while also providing insured services covered under the Alberta Health Care Insurance Plan at no cost to Albertans,” wrote spokesperson Andrea Smith in a statement.
“Once this review is completed, its findings will be used to inform next steps. Alberta’s government will also determine if additional audits of more membership clinics is required.”
In July, Health Canada said executive and primary health clinics charging patients enrolment and annual membership fees exist in a number of provinces. Generally, investigations have indicated that clinics provide members with an variety of uninsured services, such as life coaching and nutritional services.
“However, in some cases … these fees are also a prerequisite to accessing insured services at the clinic (i.e., medically necessary physician services). Mandatory fees to access or receive preferential access to insured services are contrary to the Canada Health Act,” the government department wrote in a statement.
A spokesperson for LaGrange told CBC News in July the ministry wasn’t aware of any other clinics offering services for membership fees that didn’t align with legislation.
What comes next for those 40 clinics is a murky grey area, said Fiona Clement, a professor at the University of Calgary in the department of community health sciences. Much of it has to do with the exact language being used when services are outlined as parts of packages.
“We’re on the razor’s edge of exact wording there that runs them afoul. Really, I think it will come down to what the government is willing to fight with these clinics about,” she said.
CBC News asked the provincial government for a list of the clinics identified, but did not receive it by publication time. A spokesperson with the province said if any clinics are found to be non-compliant with legislation, appropriate action would be taken.
Report had identified 14 clinics
Clement said the big issue that got the Marda Loop Medical Clinic in hot water was the concept of guaranteed access.
“That’s the problem that Marda Loop got into, because there you are charging access to medical care, which is the part that contravenes the Canada Health Act,” Clement said.
At the time the Marda Loop clinic fell under scrutiny, it was clear there were other such clinics providing membership programs, in Calgary and Canada.
In 2022, researchers from Dalhousie University and Simon Fraser University released a paper tracking the number of clinics taking private payment across the country. Between November 2019 and June 2020, the period of the analysis, there were 14 private clinics in Alberta with a range of membership fees and private payment.
“So, 40 is a larger number than I was expecting. And I think it speaks to growth in this area, the number of clinics that are charging fees for different parts of care,” Clement said.
“I think it underscores the lack of stability, and the need to really think about how we’re funding primary care, because more and more clinics are turning to this private charge as a revenue source to keep the doors open.”
Provinces that allow private health-care providers to charge patients for medically necessary services have dollars clawed back by the federal government under the Canada Health Act.
According to Health Canada, Alberta was subject to a $20,450,175 deduction to its Canada Health Transfer payment in March 2024 under the diagnostic services policy. That’s up from $13,781,152 last year.
But the province received $20,538,796 in partial reimbursements tied to its March 2023 and 2024 deductions, which represents actions that Alberta Health has taken to limit patient pay for publicly funded goods or services, according to Clement.
“I guess we’re making some progress. But it’s still a big number, which says there’s still a lot of patient billing going on,” she said.
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