COVID-19 >>"True and Helpful" Covid Information Thread

[Anonymous]

Premier Kenney is going to speak today, probably to announce more restrictions..



The mayor of Edmonton said, if the province doesn't enact forced non essential business shut downs, city council there will.

[cc]

Wow. Heavy duty stuff, but hospitals are getting overwhelmed and case numbers increasing further

. . I'll let Fash elaborate after leaders are finished speaking

[Anonymous]

Alberta had 1727 new cases today with nine new deaths..



New retrictions announced today include:



Effective Dec. 8, all indoor and outdoor social gatherings have been prohibited. This will be enforced with $1,000 fines.



Effective Dec. 8, masks are mandatory in all indoor public spaces and workplaces.



Effective Dec. 13, working from home is mandatory when physical presence is not required.



Current restrictions on child care and K-12 learning remain in effect.



Masks are mandatory in all:

indoor public places

places of worship



Mandatory - Provincewide - Effective Dec. 13

Working from home is mandatory unless the employer requires a physical presence for operational effectiveness.



Retail services must reduce customer capacity to 15% of fire code occupancy or a minimum of 5 customers:



Curbside pick up, delivery and online services are encouraged

Shop alone if possible or only with the people you live with

Shopping mall:

capacity limits of 15% include common areas and individual stores

food courts open for grab and go only



Mandatory restriction – Provincewide – Effective Dec. 13

All restaurants, pubs, bars, lounges and cafes are closed to in-person service.

Take out, curbside pickup and delivery services are allowed.



Mandatory restriction – Provincewide – Effective Dec. 13



All entertainment businesses and entities must close, including:



Casinos, bingo halls, gaming centres

Racing centres, horse tracks, raceways

Bowling alleys, pool halls

Legions and private clubs (nightclubs must remain closed)

Art galleries, libraries and museums

Science and interpretive centres

Amusement and water parks

Children's play centres and indoor playgrounds

Theatres, auditoria and concert halls

Banquet halls, conference centres and trade shows

All indoor recreation facilities must close, including:



Gyms and studios

Fitness and recreation centres

Spas, pools, indoor rinks and arenas

Day and overnight camps

Community halls and centres



Mandatory restriction – Provincewide – Effective Dec. 13



All personal and wellness services must close.



Personal services include:



esthetics, manicure, pedicure, body waxing, make-up

body, nose and ear piercing, and tattoos

artificial tanning and spray tanning

facial, eyebrow and eyelash treatments

cosmetic skin and body treatments

laser hair and tattoo removal

hairstyling and barbering



Wellness services include:

massage therapy

floatation tanks

reflexology

colonic irrigation

[Anonymous]

We are in effect in lockdown part deux.

[Thiel]

Albertans have my sysmpathies. We are into our fifth week of code red. Lockdowns are fascism masquerading as a proportional response.



Oh, and no matter what your provincial government says, your version of code red will last a minimum of six weeks. Two week circuit breakers are ineffective.

[Anonymous]

They hit the whole province of Alberta, just like Manitoba did. Ontario's lockdown is not province wide.

[Odinson]

Another mysterious disease is spreading in asia..



India this time.





I just read the headline.

[Anonymous]

Another mysterious disease is spreading in asia..



India this time.





I just read the headline.

Oh no.

[Anonymous]

I found this about the mysterious illness Odi mentioned.



'Mystery' illness puts hundreds in hospital



At least one person has died and 227 have been hospitalised by an unidentified illness in India's southern state of Andhra Pradesh.



The patients had a wide range of symptoms from nausea to fits and falling unconscious, doctors said.



https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-55209763">https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-55209763

[Anonymous]

There will be legal challenges if the Ford government adopts immunity passports.



By Brian Lilley of Sun News Media



Ford gov't talks of 'immunity passport' for vaccine



The Ford government is considering adopting an "immunity passport" to show who has taken a COVID-19 vaccine and will be eligible for certain activities once vaccination becomes widespread.



The shocking comments were made by Health Minister Christine Elliott Tuesday.



She was being asked about vaccine distribution, including convincing more people to take the shot once it is available.



The minister said that the government won't force a vaccine on anyone, but cautioned there'd be consequences for those who don't take it.



"That's their choice, this is not going to be a mandatory campaign. It will be voluntary. There may be some restrictions that may be placed on people that don't have vaccines for travel purposes, to be able to go to theatres and other places," Elliott said.



Asked by another reporter whether the government would be providing proof of vaccination, Elliott doubled down.



"Yes, because that's going to be really important for people to have for travel purposes, perhaps for work purposes, for going to theatres or cinemas or any other places where people will be in closer physical contact," Elliott said.



I may be ready and willing to take a vaccine; I may think it's the smart thing to do, but those comments jump out as having huge potential for violating the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.



The idea of an immunity passport restricting everyday societal activities could violate Section 2, which protects conscience rights; Section 6, which protects mobility rights; and Section 7, which protects "the right to life, liberty and security of the person."



Shocked that Elliott, who is also a lawyer, would endorse such an idea, I reached out to her office for confirmation.



In a statement, press secretary Alexandra Hilkene said the government is looking at many options for vaccine "tracking and surveillance."



"This includes exploring developing tech-based solutions while also providing for alternative options to ensure equitable access to any potential 'immunity passport,'" Hilkene said.



That phrase will set off alarm bells and it should, not just for anti-vaxxers, but for anyone who is concerned about charter rights and governments running roughshod over them.



Several legal experts I spoke with both on and off the record said they will need to see details before knowing how far the government is going. That said, the consensus was that what Elliott described would violate the charter.



Litigation specialist Jonathan Lisus, a lawyer since 1992 and someone who has argued many charter cases, said that the actions described by Elliott would likely end up heading to court for a judge to rule on.



"The question will be whether the infringements can be justified under Section 1," Lisus said. "For example, I can see a credible argument as a condition of visiting in hospital or air travel. It gets harder the broader the application."



Section 1 one of the charter allows governments to infringe on rights if the infringement "can be demonstrably justified."



That said, it's not a hall pass for governments and the Supreme Court has set out strict tests for what qualifies.



The broader application he mentions would be what private businesses choose to do.



Cara Zwibel, director of the fundamental freedoms program at the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, said that while there are a lot of details to learn, the idea of excluding people based on vaccine status would be problematic. She points to those who can't take vaccines for health and other reasons, protected grounds in legal terms.



She also noted problems with allowing private companies to demand to see proof of vaccination.



"There are significant privacy provisions if we are allowing private businesses to ask customers to hand over health information," Zwibel said.



While some might be willing to say vaccinate everyone and damn the consequences, that is a dangerous and slippery slope. It also tramples the rights we claim to hold dear as Canadians. The Ford government needs to tread carefully on this file.

[Anonymous]

Saskatchewan has the fewest restrictions of any province West of the maritimes. But, as our cases rise there is talk of another lockdown here. But, are lockdowns even working in the second wave?



Look at Manitoba next door. They have had the harshest lockdown in Canada for five weeks, but today eighteen people died. That is more than Alberta for Christ sakes. Look at Ontario and Quebec with high infections and high death rates after weeks of regional lockdowns. And then there are US states that have been continuously in and out of total lockdowns, but they have sky high cases and deaths. I aint opposed to lockdowns, but they seem like they aint working in the second wave.

[cc]

[This one is hard to believe and hard to take]



https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/alberta-health-working-with-calgary-facility-after-deliberate-covid-19-exposure-by-visitor-1.5224631">Alberta Health working with Calgary facility after deliberate COVID-19 exposure by visitor



CALGARY -- The province is investigating after a person who was infected with COVID-19 visited a relative at a Calgary long-term care home and lied to staff about their test result.



The exposure occurred at AgeCare Seton, a retirement community in southeast Calgary on Dec. 7, according to a memo obtained by CTV News.



The letter says the family member, who knew they were infected with the disease, visited a unit on the first floor.



Staff screened the individual, but they did not tell them they recently tested positive.



An outbreak at the building was announced Dec. 8 and officials say two staff members are sick. No residents have contracted COVID-19 so far.



News of the possible infection of residents has stunned the relatives of other residents.



"It's beyond anything I could comprehend ever happening," said John McGrath, whose mother lives at the building. "It just baffles me that somebody would do this.



"You've exposed staff that are working their butts off to care for our family," he says. "There's probably 300 to 400 people in there. To knowingly go in there and do something reckless like that – I don't even have words for it."

[Anonymous]

[This one is hard to believe and hard to take]



https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/alberta-health-working-with-calgary-facility-after-deliberate-covid-19-exposure-by-visitor-1.5224631">Alberta Health working with Calgary facility after deliberate COVID-19 exposure by visitor



CALGARY -- The province is investigating after a person who was infected with COVID-19 visited a relative at a Calgary long-term care home and lied to staff about their test result.



The exposure occurred at AgeCare Seton, a retirement community in southeast Calgary on Dec. 7, according to a memo obtained by CTV News.



The letter says the family member, who knew they were infected with the disease, visited a unit on the first floor.



Staff screened the individual, but they did not tell them they recently tested positive.



An outbreak at the building was announced Dec. 8 and officials say two staff members are sick. No residents have contracted COVID-19 so far.



News of the possible infection of residents has stunned the relatives of other residents.



"It's beyond anything I could comprehend ever happening," said John McGrath, whose mother lives at the building. "It just baffles me that somebody would do this.



"You've exposed staff that are working their butts off to care for our family," he says. "There's probably 300 to 400 people in there. To knowingly go in there and do something reckless like that – I don't even have words for it."

I don't have words for it either.

[Anonymous]

There were 1566 new infections today in Alberta and thirteen deaths.

[cc]

BC had 723 new cases & a tragic 28 deaths



We are doing better on cases of late, but deaths from when we were higher are catching up



I'm so glad they are getting care home workers vaccinated first as most (virtually all) care home cases come from workers