Quebec is in a new wave of COVID-19 cases, national director of public health Luc Boileau confirmed Thursday, who blames people with the disease who do not respect the isolation rules in force. However, he is not ready to tighten the screw on Quebecers.
“It’s a wave. It is a rise that takes the form of a wave. She is important. It already exceeds what we saw during the fourth wave [de cas de COVID-19] “, both in terms of the number of people infected and hospitalizations related to the virus, indicated Mr. Boileau at a press conference in Montreal Thursday in the presence of the Minister of Health Christian Dubé. A situation that arises at a time when the pandemic is gaining momentum in several European countries, in particular.
“For me, we are in a seventh wave,” insisted the national director of public health, in response to a journalist, adding that it should run out of steam in the coming weeks. “But there are a lot of uncertainties,” he warned, in a context where new subvariants of Omicron BA.4 and BA.5, which are spreading rapidly in Quebec.
For nearly a month, hospitalizations have been on the rise in Quebec, as have new cases of COVID-19, in a summer context marked by the return of festivals without health restrictions and the end of the mask in public transport in same as in the vast majority of public places, with the exception of hospitals.
Health authorities reported Thursday 1,534 hospitalizations linked to COVID-19 (an increase of 37 from the previous day) as well as 16 additional deaths attributed to the disease.
“We are all aware that we have entered the pleasant period of summer. Normally, it’s conducive to doing lots of activities, and that’s good, but unfortunately, all of this is happening in the shadow of a contamination that continues to continue, and even that is accentuated: that of new variants that are now well established in Quebec,” added Mr. Boileau. The latter also said he was worried about the possible increase in the number of health care workers absent from the network “because of COVID”, during the summer.
10 days of isolation
At his side, Mr. Dubé wanted to be reassuring. “We don’t like the increase in cases, but it is still under control” in the hospitals of the province, indicated the Minister of Health. However, we must “remain very vigilant”, he added, and respect the rules of isolation if we have contracted COVID-19. “You have to respect these 10 days of isolation. It’s important,” insisted Mr. Dubé, who sees this as “one of the ways to learn to live with the virus.”
Luc Boileau also believes that the main cause of the increase in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations is related to people who have “many contacts” when they are infected with the disease. “You really have to keep in mind the fact that you are contagious for 10 days and that’s why it gets so contaminated. It’s because people don’t follow that ten-day rule,” he said.
The Ministry of Health and Social Services did not specify to the To have to What data is this assertion based on? “I have not seen any data that supported this reflection,” notes Dr. Caroline Quach-Thanh, president of the Quebec Immunization Committee (CIQ), in an interview Thursday.
“I have more the impression that the majority of people who are contagious do not know it because they have few or no symptoms and they have received a false negative test”, estimates the expert.
In writing, the ministry affirms for its part that “this recent increase in cases may, among other things, be attributable to people with COVID-19 who do not fully comply with the rules of isolation” or to those who are “suffering from COVID without knowing it” and who therefore do not put themselves in isolation.
To control the spread of COVID, people are encouraged to follow isolation rules and get vaccinated. A table is also available to clearly indicate who should get their booster dose. https://t.co/LTjCQ3kTtk pic.twitter.com/HttNmheaFE
— Christian Dubé (@cdube_sante) July 7, 2022
Booster dose
Seniors or people with chronic illnesses should also get a booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, if they haven’t already, Boileau said. “At the moment, it’s circulating [la COVID-19] and it’s a good time to go for a booster dose, he said. Go ahead, it’s the right time”. For people who aren’t at risk for severe complications, the booster dose is “encouraged,” “but it’s less crucial for you,” he said.
As for wearing a mask in public places, in particular in public transit, it is recommended for people at risk or who have recently contracted COVID-19, indicated Mr. Boileau. The latter, however, rules out the possibility of making it compulsory again in certain public places, as long as the health system holds up.
The national director of public health also does not plan to make PCR tests again accessible to all clienteles, public health being able to obtain relevant data on the evolution of the pandemic by analyzing municipal wastewater. These analyzes make it possible to predict “the rise or fall of contamination in the community” at least a week’s notice, he said.