By Canadian Press

A look at the latest COVID-19 developments in Canada

Jan 18, 2022 | 2:55 PM

A look at the latest COVID-19 news in Canada:

— Ontario schools are starting to distribute COVID-19 rapid tests and ramp up on-site vaccination clinics as more students head back to class in-person. The province has said it will provide two rapid COVID-19 tests for staff and students now that PCR tests are less accessible to everyone due to high case volumes. The Lakehead District School Board in Thunder Bay, Ont., where classes ran in-person Monday and Tuesday, said 16,000 rapid tests were in schools on the first day of classes. In southwestern Ontario, the St. Clair Catholic District School Board said it would be sending the test kits home with students on Jan. 20. The Toronto Catholic Board, meanwhile, said tests would be distributed starting next Monday. 

— The heads of some child-care centres in Ontario say they’ve received limited supplies of N95 masks from the provincial government and no indication as to when they will be replenished. Lori Prospero, CEO of RisingOaks Early Learning, says she’s “really thankful” for the N95 masks that the province recently provided for daycares. But she says between the eight RisingOaks centres she oversees, which are all in the Waterloo region, there are only enough masks to last staff for about a week or two. Prospero says the centres have received no word from the government as to when more N95 masks will arrive, how many they will receive, or how regularly supplies will be replenished. 

— Ontario is set to make an announcement later this week about reducing COVID-19 restrictions, Premier Doug Ford says, as some health-sector experts pointed to early signs of an ebbing Omicron wave. Ford told Ottawa radio station CFRA that he hates putting the public health measures in place and that there will soon be some positive news on that front. “There’s no one that dislikes these lockdowns more than I do. I actually despise them,” the premier said in the interview, adding that he follows the advice of the chief medical officer of health. “We’ll have some positive news. I believe we’re going to make some announcements later this week about going back to other levels of restrictions.”

— Canada’s two biggest airlines are cutting thousands of flights as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to surge. WestJet Airlines Inc. says it will cancel 20 per cent of its February flights, less than three weeks after announcing flight reductions of 15 per cent for January. The move marks a response to “government barriers” amid the Omicron variant, which has also affected staffing levels, the Calgary-based airline says. While Air Canada has not announced major flight consolidations, it has cancelled 15 per cent of its flights in March and 11 per cent in February — 6,805 flights in total — within the last two weeks alone, according to figures from airline data company Cirium.

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— Grocery stores are struggling with rising labour and product shortages that experts warn could threaten Canada’s food security. Gary Sands, senior vice-president of public policy with the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers, says employee absenteeism due to COVID-19 protocols has hit about 30 per cent across Canada, and rising. Without access to rapid testing in many provinces, he says workers are repeatedly forced to isolate for a week or more after an exposure to COVID-19. Sands says if the situation worsens, some grocery stores won’t be able to open — threatening food security in rural and remote areas of the country that rely on a sole independent grocer.

— The rise in the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations is slowing down in Quebec, Health Minister Christian Dubé says, but he warns  the health-care system remains too fragile to relax public health orders. About 12,000 health-care workers are absent due to COVID-19, Dubé told reporters in Montreal. While that number has dropped from a recent high of 20,000, it remains at the level reached during the peak of the first wave of the pandemic. The number of hospitalizations linked to COVID-19 in Quebec rose by 36, the lowest daily increase in more than three weeks. But with hospitalizations still rising, Dubé said it’s too soon to lift public health orders that have shut bars, restaurants and gyms.

— Staff at shelters and homeless agencies are struggling to support people living on the streets as the highly transmissible Omicron COVID-19 variant sweeps through communities. Deirdre Freiheit, president and CEO of Shepherds of Good Hope in Ottawa, says her organization is grappling with staff shortages, the shelters and isolation centre being at full capacity, and people staying in shelters longer due to a lack of affordable housing.Freiheit says her team has had to put people in staff positions they wouldn’t normally do, like turning managers and security guards into front-line workers, and administrative staff into recruiting specialists. 

— The Saskatchewan Health Authority says health-care services may be interrupted in the weeks ahead when a tide of COVID-19 hospitalizations and absences among workers is expected to hit. Derek Miller, the authority’s interim chief operating officer, says health teams are putting together plans for service slowdowns which could affect surgeries. Last week, there were 1,000 health-care employees off the job because they were either sick with COVID-19 or had to take time off to care for a child.

— Vancouver Canucks captain Bo Horvat has been placed in the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol. The 26-year-old centre was added to the list as the Canucks prepared to face the Predators in Nashville Tuesday night. He’s the latest Canucks player to be added to the COVID protocol, coming after backup goalie Jaroslav Halak was added Saturday and right-winger Conor Garland on Sunday. 

— Montreal Canadiens forwards Cole Caufield and Joel Armia have been placed in the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol ahead of Tuesday’s game in Dallas against the Stars. The last-place Canadiens have endured a miserable season to date, including a coronavirus outbreak that forced 24 players and two assistant coaches into isolation at its height. Caufield, 21, who won the Hobey Baker Award as the top player in U.S. college hockey before joining Montreal ahead of its improbable run to the Stanley Cup final last spring, has just one goal and seven assists in a 2021-22 season which has included a demotion to the minors. Armia, meanwhile, was also placed in COVID-19 protocol back in June, which forced him to miss Game 1 of the title series against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

— Nunavut’s premier says the territory has recorded its first COVID-19 death during the Omicron wave. P.J. Akeeagok is sharing his condolences with the person’s family and community. It’s the fifth COVID-19 death in Nunavut since the start of the pandemic almost two years ago.

— New Brunswick’s health minister has issued a call for volunteers to help with the province’s pandemic response effort. Dorothy Shephard says the Omicron variant is causing increased hospitalizations and staff shortages.  In a statement, she says the government needs people for paid and unpaid work in both clinical and non-clinical roles.  

— Prince Edward Island is imposing strict, new health restrictions amid rising numbers of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations. As of midnight, personal gatherings will be limited to a single household plus two support people, and funeral and wedding ceremonies will be restricted to a maximum of 10 people. Gyms and recreation facilities will be closed and in-room dining at restaurants won’t be permitted. The new restrictions, including continued online learning for schools, will be in place until at least Jan. 31. 

— Ten people in Newfoundland and Labrador have died from COVID-19 in the past three weeks. Public health officials reported two more deaths attributed to the disease, marking the province’s 27th and 28th COVID-19-related deaths. One-third of the province’s COVID-19 deaths have occurred since Dec. 30, when the total stood at 18.

— Nova Scotia is reporting 13 new hospital admissions and one more death today as a result of COVID-19. Health officials say a woman in her 80s has died in the province’s eastern zone — the fifth death reported in the last two days. A total of 73 people are in hospital receiving care in a designated COVID-19 unit, including 15 who are in intensive care.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 18, 2022.

The Canadian Press