As healthcare facilities across Canada wrestle with staff shortages and uncounted Canadians lacking access to physicians, an immigration backlog described by lawyers as the worst they have ever seen has sidelined qualified health professionals. The backlog is such that processing new permanent residency applications for immigrants averages 2.6 months and in some cases can be much longer. [node:read-more:link]
A new Asia-Pacific coronavirus wave underscores the need to take precautions immmediately if healthcare systems are not to be overwhelmed again. Mostly BA .4 and .5 variants, the resurgence prompted New Zealand to begin free distribution July 14 of masks and rapid antigen tests. [node:read-more:link]
A new Asia-Pacific coronavirus wave underscores the need to take precautions immmediately if healthcare systems are not to be overwhelmed again. Mostly BA .4 and .5 variants, the resurgence prompted New Zealand to begin free distribution July 14 of masks and rapid antigen tests. [node:read-more:link]
An Alberta judge has ruled that it is not unconstitutional to refuse an organ transplant to a woman who has refused COVID-19 vaccine as a matter of “conscience.” Annette Lewis had sought preserve her place on a waitlist after doctors told her she was ineligible. Court of Queen's Bench Justice Paul Belzil dismissed her challenge July 12, explaining that the Charter of Rights and Freedoms is not applicable in such cases. [node:read-more:link]
The last remaining COVID-19 restrictions in Nova Scotia, including mandatory isolation for those who test, are to be dropped July 6. Dr. Robert Strang, the province’s chief medical officer of health, says “we’re at a place now with our epidemiology . . . that we feel it’s appropriate to do what many other provinces have already done and make some adjustments.” [node:read-more:link]
Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos has confirmed that federal public health requirements for visitors, including use of the ArriveCAN app, are expected to remain in place until the end of September. Also, the suspension of random COVID-19 testing for airport arrivals has been extended to mid-July. [node:read-more:link]
A judge who presided over court appearances of “Freedom Convoy” organizers says there have been threats and other offensive messages from Canadian and U.S. sources that police considered serious enough to require intervention. “It's intimidation,” said the judge whose identity is protected. “It's trying to influence a court decision, and that's serious.” [node:read-more:link]
The Dominican Republic, a popular Caribbean destination for Canadian tourists, has been added to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s “Level 3: Covid-19 High” risk category along with Kuwait. As of the weekend, there were some 115 Level 3 designations, accounting for nearly half of the places monitored by the CDC. [node:read-more:link]
There has been no Canadian government followup so far on a U.S. announcement that diplomats showing mysterious symptoms first noted at their embassy in Havana several years ago will be compensated. The “Havana Syndrome”, also reported by Canadian diplomats and their families, evidently resulted in long-term cognitive impairment. The president of the Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers says Ottawa needs to “get to the bottom of what this is so that we can figure out what the best way of helping people is.” [node:read-more:link]
Some 72 per cent of Canadians evidently are displeased with how their provincial governments are handling health care, according to an Angus Reid Institute poll of more than 5,000 respondents this month. Governments are signalling by their words and actions that the pandemic is over,” Institute President Shachi Kuri says. “It is not surprising, then, that their constituents begin to expect primary medical care that is at least as reliable and accessible as it was before the pandemic” [node:read-more:link]
Growing concern about the personal safety of Members of Parliament have prompted parliamentary security to issue MPs with emergency response technology. The decision has been confirmed by Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino, himself the target death threats on social media, and follows recent harassment of NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh during an Ontario election campaign event. [node:read-more:link]
The federal government has committed $3.5 million on two projects designed to improve abortion access in Canada. This comes as the U.S. seems headed for a judicial reversal of a decades-old Supreme Court legalizing the process and a potential increase in the number of American women seeking services in Canada. [node:read-more:link]
Poor management of personal protective equipment procurement in the initial stages of the coronavirus pandemic wasted nearly $1 billion, Quebec’s auditor general said May 11. Guylaine Leclerc also reported that despite a rapidly-aging demographic, the province’s health ministry’s projected health care needs are 15 years out of date. [node:read-more:link]
As the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to rule on a case which could return abortion jurisdiction to state governments, Minister of Families, Children & Social Development Karina Gould said May 3 that she could see no reason why U.S. women could not seek abortions in Canada. “If they . . . come here and need access, certainly . . . that’s a service that could be provided,” she said. [node:read-more:link]
Effective April 25, some of Canada’s pandemic border restrictions are being eased for those who are fully vaccinated and for children aged five to 11 regardless of their vaccination status as long as they are accompanied by a vaccinated parent or guardian. Pre-entry remains mandatory for eligible party-vaccinated or unvaccinated visitors aged 12 and up and vaccine mandates remain in effect for boarding aircraft, trains or cruise ships. [node:read-more:link]
