Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc says he has full confidence that Canada’s provinces will be able to handle the influx of COVID-19 vaccine doses arriving in the country in the weeks and months ahead.
“We’re going to see a significant ramp-up in these last weeks of February and into March … so we’re very confident, and provinces certainly tell us they’re anxious and ready to receive more vaccines, as I know all Canadians are,” LeBlanc said Sunday in an interview on Rosemary Barton Live. “We’re quite confident it will be very effective.”
The minister said Maj.-Gen. Dany Fortin — the commander in charge of Canada’s vaccine logistics — has been conducting a series of rehearsals and tabletop exercises with counterparts in each province to prepare for the 23 million doses expected between April and June.
“Everything that Gen. Fortin and the public health agency tell us is that the provinces are ready. But as always, if there are gaps or if there are needs for redundancy, sort of for backup plans, the government of Canada … will be there to help them,” LeBlanc told CBC Chief Political Correspondent Rosemary Barton.
Hundreds of thousands of doses expected each week
In the coming week, Canada is slated to receive just over 643,000 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau makes his way to a news conference in Ottawa on Friday. After convening a call with Canada’s premiers on Thursday evening, Trudeau said Ottawa is working with the provinces and territories to ensure they’re ready to dole out more vaccines. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)
“Vaccines are my top priority. I know the premiers feel the same,” Trudeau said. “The big lift we’re going to face, as our vaccine deliveries shift to the millions, means the provinces will need to be ready.”
The federal government has taken pains to reassure Canadians that the country’s COVID-19 inoculation campaign is back on track after several hiccups earlier this year.
The early weeks of the vaccine rollout were marked by disagreements between Ottawa and the provinces over how quickly provinces were administering the doses they had received. In the weeks that followed, Canada saw reduced shipments of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines — the only shots to receive regulatory approval in Canada.
LeBlanc said approving other vaccine candidates and broadening the types of health-care professionals who can administer jabs — such as family doctors and pharmacists — could also speed up Canada’s rollout.
Starting Monday, passengers returning from non-essential trips abroad will need to book a stay in participating hotels in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto or Montreal for up to 72 hours — or until the results of their polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test come through.
But LeBlanc said Canadians who say they can’t afford the stay — which could cost between several hundred dollars up to $2,000 — shouldn’t expect the government to foot the bill.
“For the moment, no. That is a cost that shall properly be borne by the returning traveller,” the minister said, adding that the government has been firm on discouraging non-essential travel and that public health measures exist to keep all Canadians safe.
“We understand they’re tough, and it might represent a hardship for some people, but it’s necessary, in our judgment, to continue to protect Canadians during a pandemic.”
Concerns over costs
Gabby Boulding, a Canadian studying abroad in Scotland, is one person facing that dilemma.
She first arrived in Scotland in 2019 before the pandemic hit, but her visa expires in early March. That means she has no choice when it comes to returning home.
“I legally have to come home, and I’ve known this is happening for so long that I’ve budgeted, I’ve planned, I know flight costs, baggage fees and all the extra stuff. But $2,000 for a just-finished student is absolutely something I don’t have,” Boulding told Barton in a separate interview.
“I don’t think people are really choosing to travel,” she said of situations similar to her own. “We’re just doing what we have to. If you look at the definition of essential, that’s exactly what it is.”
WATCH | Canadian student abroad on expiring visa seeks hotel quarantine exemption:
Gabby Boulding, a Canadian student in Edinburgh, is petitioning to exempt students living abroad on visas from hotel costs during quarantine in Canada. Her student visa expires in March, and she says the new travel requirements make returning home difficult to afford. 6:56
LeBlanc said those studying abroad have a “more compelling reason” to travel than those choosing to visit resorts in sunny destinations.
“But these people have an obligation to follow the public health advice that can change without notice,” he said.
Health Canada has authorized Novavax’s updated COVID-19 vaccine that protects against currently circulating variants of the virus.
The protein-based vaccine, called Nuvaxovid, has been reformulated to target the JN.1 subvariant of Omicron.
It will replace the previous version of the vaccine, which targeted the XBB.1.5 subvariant of Omicron.
Health Canada recently asked provinces and territories to get rid of their older COVID-19 vaccines to ensure the most current vaccine will be used during this fall’s respiratory virus season.
Earlier this week, Health Canada approved Moderna’s updated mRNA COVID vaccine.
It is still reviewing Pfizer’s updated mRNA vaccine, with a decision expected soon.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
Note to readers: This is a corrected story. A previous version erroneously described the Novavax vaccine as an mRNA shot.
HALIFAX – The federal Fisheries Department says an endangered North Atlantic right whale has become entangled in gear in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
The department says the whale was sighted Wednesday by a Transport Canada aerial surveillance team northeast of the Gaspé Peninsula, off Anticosti Island.
Officials say it’s not known what type of gear has entangled the whale or where the gear came from.
Based on observation, experts at the New England Aquarium have confirmed the whale is a female known as Chiminea.
The department says it is continuing to monitor the area and if the whale is located and conditions allow, efforts will be made to disentangle the animal.
Last October, the North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium estimated there were 356 North Atlantic right whales left on the planet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Canadian pop icon Nelly Furtado has been named one of three headliners for the opening ceremony of the upcoming Invictus Games.
Furtado, from Victoria, will share the stage with alt-pop star Roxane Bruneau of Delson, Que., and American singer-songwriter Noah Kahan.
They’ll be part of the show that opens the multi-sport event in Vancouver and Whistler, B.C., in February.
The Invictus Games sees wounded, injured, and sick military service members and Veterans compete in 11 disciplines.
The Vancouver Whistler 2025 Games will be the first of seven editions to feature winter adaptive sports, including alpine skiing, Nordic skiing, skeleton and wheelchair curling.
British Columbia’s Lower Mainland will host the Invictus Games from Feb. 8-16.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
