COVID-19 Update: Restrictions on kids’ sports, restaurants, indoor fitness to be eased Feb. 8



a person standing in front of a bar: Karen Gott, assistant general manager of Trolley 5 Restaurant and Brewery in Calgary, raises a glass Friday after the province announced it will allow in-person dining on Feb. 8, 2021.


© Provided by Calgary Herald
Karen Gott, assistant general manager of Trolley 5 Restaurant and Brewery in Calgary, raises a glass Friday after the province announced it will allow in-person dining on Feb. 8, 2021.

With news on COVID-19 happening rapidly, we’ve created this page to bring you our latest stories and information on the outbreak in and around Calgary.

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Read our ongoing coverage of personal stories arising from the pandemic.



graphical user interface, company name:  Numbers reported by Alberta Health on Friday, Jan. 29.


Numbers reported by Alberta Health on Friday, Jan. 29.

Braid: Kenney betting carrot-and-stick plan will beat back COVID-19 and allow reopenings



Jason Kenney holding a sign in front of a curtain:  Premier Jason Kenney provided, from Calgary on Friday, January 29, 2021, an update on COVID-19. Additional health measures will be eased for restaurants, indoor fitness and some children’s activities, effective Feb. 8.


© Provided by Calgary Herald
Premier Jason Kenney provided, from Calgary on Friday, January 29, 2021, an update on COVID-19. Additional health measures will be eased for restaurants, indoor fitness and some children’s activities, effective Feb. 8.

Columnist Don Braid writes:

The Alberta government and Dr. Deena Hinshaw have come up with an ingenious formula for the gradual reopening of public activities.

COVID-19 may or may not pay attention. But this plan is certainly worth a try.

Current measures impose a heavy toll on finances, businesses, jobs and mental health. Resentment is growing and some business people are starting to defy the rules.

Alberta often feels like a pressure cooker ready to pop.

Premier Jason Kenney and his cabinet had to bring some sense of hope and momentum.

Read more .

Alberta will ease some restrictions on gyms, restaurants and kids’ sports Feb. 8



Jason Kenney wearing a suit and tie:  Premier Jason Kenney announced the easing of some restrictions Friday.


© Provided by Calgary Herald
Premier Jason Kenney announced the easing of some restrictions Friday.

Alberta will begin lifting some public-health measures meant to combat the spread of COVID-19 starting Monday, Feb. 8, Premier Jason Kenney announced Friday.

Starting on that day, restaurants, cafes and pubs will be allowed to reopen for some dine-in options. Gyms may reopen, and some indoor and outdoor children’s sports and performance may resume.

It’s the first phase in a plan unveiled by Kenney Friday, detailing plans for future reopening even as officials sound the alarm on the risk of more-contagious COVID-19 variants and a worsening shortage of vaccine supply.

Read more .

Timeline: How the province plans to phase out restrictions



timeline:  The South Health Campus in Calgary on Nov. 12.


© Provided by Calgary Herald
The South Health Campus in Calgary on Nov. 12.

Alberta Premier Jason Kenney revealed the province’s plan to ease restrictions in a stepped process based on hospitalizations on Friday afternoon. At least 21 days would have to pass between each step.

  • Step 1, 600 hospitalizations: Some restrictions eased on indoor and outdoor children’s sport and performance (school-related), restaurants and pubs and indoor fitness. These restrictions will be eased starting on Feb. 8
  • Step 2, 450 hospitalizations: Some restrictions eased on retail and community halls, hotels, banquet halls and conference centres
  • Step 3, 300 hospitalizations: Some restrictions eased on places of worship; adult team sports; indoor social gatherings; indoor seated events including movie theatres and auditoriums; casinos, racing centres and bingo halls; and libraries museums, art galleries, zoos and interpretive centres
  • Step 4, 150 hospitalizations: Some restrictions eased on performance activities (singing and dancing); tradeshows, conferences and exhibiting events; indoor and outdoor festivals; day camps and overnight camps; amusement parks and outdoor sporting events; wedding ceremonies and receptions and funeral receptions; indoor entertainment and play centres, indoor concerts and sporting events; and workplaces

Alberta chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw provided the latest update on COVID-19 in the province.

  • 543 new cases on 11,591 tests; 4.5% positivity rate
  • 594 in hospital; 110 in ICUs
  • 14 additional deaths; 1,620 deaths
  • 7,805 active cases; 113,939 recovered
  • Active alerts or outbreaks in 291 schools; 607 cases in these schools
  • 12 more cases of variant COVID-19; 31 cases total of U.K. variant; 6 cases total of South Africa variant
  • All but three are linked to travel, but those three non-travel-related cases are in the same household

Health Minister Tyler Shandro provided an update on the progress of vaccines in Alberta.

  • Over 104,000 vaccines administered, 14,000 fully immunized
  • Moderna shipment to Alberta cut from 24,600 doses to 18,800 doses next week

 

Airlines agree to ‘unprecedented’ travel restrictions, cutting flights to Mexico, Caribbean



a group of people walking down a street next to a bag of luggage:  Masked travellers arrive at the International terminal in YYC (Calgary International Airport) on Friday, January 29, 2021.


© Azin Ghaffari/Postmedia
Masked travellers arrive at the International terminal in YYC (Calgary International Airport) on Friday, January 29, 2021.

New travel restrictions imposed by the federal government on Friday — including the temporary cancellation of all sun destination flights from Canada — will bring travel demand to a grinding halt as never before seen in this country, experts say.

“It’s not a knockout punch, but it’s a standing eight count for us for sure, for the next three months,” said Ken Stewart, owner of Calgary travel agency Crowfoot Travel Solutions. “This is going to affect a lot of people.”

Read more .

‘I misstated’: UCP MLA apologizes for false statement on COVID-19 testing accuracy



a man wearing a suit and tie:  United Conservative Party MLA Drew Barnes in Edmonton on February 27, 2019.


© Provided by Calgary Herald
United Conservative Party MLA Drew Barnes in Edmonton on February 27, 2019.

A UCP MLA is apologizing for having “misstated an important point” about COVID-19 testing after falsely saying in a recent interview that such tests may only be 50 per cent effective.

Cypress-Medicine Hat MLA Drew Barnes tweeted Friday that his comments “created confusion.”

Speaking to the Western Standard on Thursday, Barnes said “we’re hearing here that our tests may be 50 per cent ineffective.” He also appeared to question the value of wearing face coverings, saying “masks are worn even though it’s debatable about the effectiveness.”

Read more .

Alberta Summer Games cancelled



a train crossing a bridge over water:  Biking in the coulee near the High Level Bridge in Lethbridge.


© Andrew Penner
Biking in the coulee near the High Level Bridge in Lethbridge.

Plans to host the Alberta Summer Games in Lethbridge this summer have official been cancelled by organizers.

The games for young Alberta athletes were at first set to be held in 2020, but were moved ahead one year due to COVID-19.

In a release put out today, the Lethbridge Summer Games Society said they have now been cancelled altogether.

“With the continuing concerns surrounding COVID-19 in Alberta. The ability to stage a safe, responsible and meaningful event was not possible,” read the release.

Rick Blakeley, president of the Lethbridge Summer Games Society, said the news is disappointing not just for athletes, but also for coaches, officials, parents, partners, sponsors and volunteers.

“The COVID-19 pandemic continues with so much uncertainty making this decision exceedingly difficult,” he said. “I commend our Board for their resilience and the desire to continue when we announced the postponement last March, we were preparing a modified Games for this summer but our vision for a memorable event has been met with many roadblocks and concerns.”

More than 1,000 oilsands workers infected with COVID-19 since beginning of pandemic



a steam train on a track with smoke coming out of it:  Suncor oilsands extraction facility is pictured near Fort McMurray. Suncor has had more oilsands workers test positive for COVID-19 than any other company since the beginning of the pandemic.


© MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images
Suncor oilsands extraction facility is pictured near Fort McMurray. Suncor has had more oilsands workers test positive for COVID-19 than any other company since the beginning of the pandemic.

COVID-19 has infected more than 1,000 workers during 21 outbreaks in the oilsands since the pandemic began in March.

The Fort McMurray Wood Buffalo area is home to 16 of those outbreaks — more workplace outbreaks than any other community outside Calgary and Edmonton — and makes up nearly 85 per cent of cases.

Industry representatives say this is a trend reflective of the general population going through a second wave. Mayor Don Scott and labour leaders say these figures show limits to Alberta’s public data on workplace outbreaks.

“AHS has not been forthcoming with a lot of information. We have asked for a lot of details on a lot of things, but we’re not getting it all the time,” said Scott. “It’s been a trend throughout this entire COVID-19 experience that we’re never getting all the information that we would like.”

Read more .

Trudeau announces pause on flights to Caribbean and Mexico

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canadian air carriers have agreed to halt service to sunny destinations in the Caribbean and Mexico until the end of April.

The flights will stop on Sunday. Trudeau said carriers will be working with travellers already in these destinations on return flight plans.

In a social media post, WestJet said it will continue to bring guests back from these two destinations over the next two weeks.

In addition to this, travellers returning to Canada by air will soon face new mandatory quarantine measures.

Read more on the flight cancellations and quarantine requirements here .

Trudeau also announced a delay in Moderna Vaccine shipments. Canada will only get 78 per cent of its expected shipment next week.

He said in talking with the CEO of Pfizer, he has assurances Canada will get four million doses by the end of March, and potential deliveries “ahead of schedule” after March.

Watch the livestream above.

Canadian government to force incoming travellers into hotels for quarantine



Justin Trudeau et al. performing on a counter:  Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks via videoconference during question period in the House of Commons on Monday, Jan. 25, 2021.


© Justin Tang/The Canadian Press/File
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks via videoconference during question period in the House of Commons on Monday, Jan. 25, 2021.

Travellers coming into Canada will be forced into a mandatory hotel quarantine as the government is increasingly concerned about the risk of new COVID variants that appear to be more transmissible and more deadly.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is expected to announce the new measure at a press conference Friday morning, the National Post has learned.

The hotel stays will be at travellers expense and is the latest in a string of measures designed to discourage Canadians from travelling abroad.

Read more .

Canadians think the feds are doing a ‘poor job’ on vaccine procurement: poll



a group of people standing around a plane:  A shipment of the initial doses of the COVID-19 vaccine arrives in Calgary on Dec. 14, 2020.


© Provided by Calgary Herald
A shipment of the initial doses of the COVID-19 vaccine arrives in Calgary on Dec. 14, 2020.

Canadians’ faith in the federal government’s ability to procure and distribute VOCID-19 vaccines is faltering, according to a new poll from the Angus Reid Institute.

Only 45 per cent of Canadians say they’re confident in the federal government’s ability to get the vaccine out across the county. Six weeks ago, that number was much higher, at 58 per cent.

The number of Canadians who feel the government has done a “good job” in securing vaccine doses has fallen 11 points, to 36 per cent. The percentage who feel that the government has done a “poor job” has doubled, to 44 per cent.

Government confidence in Alberta is low for both the provincial and federal numbers. When asked how confident they were in the provincial government to manage the distribution of vaccines, 57 per cent of Albertans said they were not that confident or not at all confident. Only 35 per cent responded confident or very confident – the lowest of all provinces.

In B.C., 57 per cent say they’re confident or very confident in the province’s vaccine distribution ability, while nationally that number is 51 per cent.

The poll was conducted from Jan. 20 to 24 among a representative randomized survey of 1,559 Canadians who are members of the Angus Reid Forum. As it was not a randomized survey, a margin of error is not possible. However a probability sample of this size would have a margin of error of 2.5 percentage points 19 times out of 20.

Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine is 66% effective globally



a close up of a bottle:  Vials with a sticker reading, “COVID-19 / Coronavirus vaccine / Injection only” and a medical syringe are seen in front of a displayed Johnson & Johnson logo in this illustration taken October 31, 2020.


© Dado Ruvic/Illustration
Vials with a sticker reading, “COVID-19 / Coronavirus vaccine / Injection only” and a medical syringe are seen in front of a displayed Johnson & Johnson logo in this illustration taken October 31, 2020.

Johnson & Johnson said its single-dose vaccine was 72% effective in preventing COVID-19 in the United States but a lower rate of 66% was observed globally in the large trial conducted across three continents and against multiple variants.

In the trial of nearly 44,000 volunteers, the level of protection against moderate and severe COVID-19 was just 57% in South Africa, where a particularly worrying variant of the novel coronavirus is circulating.

Read more .

 

Thursday

Braid: In high-stakes vaccine game, Alberta’s luck has gone cold



a hand holding a remote control:  A pharmacist holds vials of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.


© Yuki Iwamura/Reuters
A pharmacist holds vials of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.

Columnist Don Braid writes:

We don’t generally think of Canada as underdeveloped. We are, in fact, quite rich.

But we’re 20th in the world for vaccinations given. In vaccine production we’re at zero, like dozens of poor countries.

Hindsight acuity far short of 20-20 tells us that Canada should have maintained production facilities for vaccine. Now, we depend on Europe and the U.S., just as vaccine nationalism is setting in.

Read more .

Thursday

‘Failing all Albertans’: Shandro decries further cuts in vaccine shipments from Ottawa

Alberta seniors will bear the brunt following another round of cuts to vaccine shipments from the federal government, an angry provincial Health Minister Tyler Shandro said Thursday.

Saying the Trudeau government “continues to fail us and to fail all Albertans,” Shandro said a reduction of 63,000 doses for the first quarter of this year announced by Ottawa Thursday adds to the uncertainty in completing the first phase of the province’s COVID-19 vaccine rollout.

“This is a grim situation that seems to be getting worse with every passing week … enough is enough,” he said, adding it’s the third announced scale-back in deliveries in the past month.

Read more .

Thursday

Vaccine is long way off for people with developmental disabilities, at high risk for COVID-19



 A vial of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine.


© Provided by Calgary Herald
A vial of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine.

For Robin Acton’s 32-year-old daughter, the COVID-19 pandemic has meant staying home instead of seeing friends, shopping at stores or going to work.

The fear of potentially being exposed to somebody infected by the virus is too grave and has led to added pressures on her mental health.

Most Albertans have endured similar challenges for the better part of the last 11 months, but they’re ever more critical for Acton’s daughter, who lives with Down syndrome.

Research has shown that those with Down syndrome are four times more likely to contract COVID-19 and 10 times more likely to die from it than the general population. But as the province seeks to ensure its most vulnerable citizens are vaccinated against COVID-19 the soonest, it’s unclear when those with developmental disabilities and their support workers receive their shots.

Read more .

Thursday

Alberta data show travel-related COVID-19 cases spiked in January



chart


© Provided by Calgary Herald


The number of COVID-19 infections in Alberta linked to travel has climbed since the summer, with January seeing by far the greatest number of new cases linked to those who left the province.

The increase in cases originating outside the country comes amid heightened concerns over more infectious variants of the novel coronavirus proliferating in other countries.

Read more .

Thursday

City Superstore, rural bar cited for COVID-19 violations



a blue sign in front of a building:  The Real Canadian Superstore is owned by Loblaws Company Ltd.


© Provided by Calgary Herald
The Real Canadian Superstore is owned by Loblaws Company Ltd.

Health authorities have censured a northwest Calgary grocery store and shut down a rural pub, citing violations of COVID-19 restrictions.

On Wednesday, Alberta Health Services inspectors ordered managers at the Real Canadian Superstore at 5251 Country Hills Blvd. N.W. to tighten up COVID-19 protocols, after finding a large lineup of customers snaking around the store that failed to physically distance.

On Jan. 22, inspectors ordered the Mossleigh Bar n’ Grill in the town 90 kilometres southeast of Calgary to close after discovering it was offering dine-in service, which was banned in December in a bid to control spread of the virus.

Read more .

Thursday

461 new cases, seven deaths

Health Minister Tyler Shandro joined Dr. Deena Hinshaw at this afternoon’s provincial COVID-19 update.

  • Over 102,500 doses of vaccine administered; 12,000 Albertans with second doses
  • 461 new cases on 12,324 tests; 3.9% positivity rate
  • 591 in hospital; 112 in ICUs
  • Seven deaths; 1,606 total
  • 8,041 active cases; 113,174 recovered
  • Active alerts or outbreaks in 300 schools; 593 cases in these schools

It was originally announced that Premier Jason Kenney would be joining Hinshaw, but an afternoon press release from the provincial government said that Kenney would be replaced by Shandro.

You can watch the full update below.