(Ottawa) The federal government plans to send several million rapid tests to Quebec this week and an even larger quantity during the following weeks. At the same time, a first shipment ordered by the Quebec government directly from suppliers is due to arrive on Wednesday.
“Several tens of millions of tests will follow in January 2022”, was indicated to the office of the Minister of Health, Jean-Yves Duclos, Tuesday afternoon.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is due to take stock of COVID-19 with Mr. Duclos on Wednesday. They will be joined by Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Theresa Tam, and Canada’s Deputy Chief Public Health Officer Howard Njoo.
Ottawa provided more than 11.2 million rapid tests to Quebec in December out of the 35 million distributed in all provinces and territories.
Many Quebecers have had difficulty obtaining their five free rapid tests distributed in pharmacies for several weeks. The Minister of Health, Christian Dubé, had blamed the federal government for its “limited arrivals”. At the cabinet of his counterpart, it is pointed out that Quebec has received more than the 10 million rapid tests it had requested.
However, deliveries to Ottawa were interrupted during the holiday season, according to the Quebec Ministry of Health and Social Services. He therefore ordered some directly from the suppliers. A first shipment of 3 million tests is expected at the end of the day on Wednesday. They will then be distributed to pharmacies during the following days.