Ottawa will send the provinces almost four rapid tests per person during the month of January, or 140 million of these self-tests currently out of stock in pharmacies in Quebec.
“Rapid tests are proving to be a major tool to help members of the Canadian population reduce the spread of the Omicron variant,” Federal Minister of Health Jean-Yves Duclos said during a press briefing on Wednesday.
Since the test boxes will be sent to the provinces in proportion to their population, Quebec can expect to receive approximately 31 million tests.
The minister spent part of the holiday season dismissing criticism from the provinces that the federal government failed in its duty to provide enough rapid tests in December.
” [Il est] It is important to note that the federal government delivered 11.2 million rapid tests to Quebec for the month of December alone. Quebec’s demand was 10 million, ”for example tweeted the minister on the eve of the New Year’s Day celebrations.
Jean-Yves Duclos also recalled Wednesday that 85 million of these tests had been sent to the provinces before December, and the advent of the new Omicron variant which caused new confinements. One year ago, in January 2021, The duty reported that Quebec had used barely 1% of its rapid tests in reserve.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Wednesday that “hundreds of millions” of rapid tests will be sent to the provinces, the level of government most able to distribute them effectively.
More details will follow.
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