(Ottawa) All travelers arriving in Canada by air, except those arriving from the United States, will be required to be tested upon arrival at the airport, whether or not they are fully vaccinated. These same travelers will have to isolate themselves while waiting to receive the result of their COVID-19 screening test, Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos announced on Tuesday as other cases of the disease were reported. Omicron variant in the country.
Mr. Duclos indicated that these new measures will come into force “in the next few days”, that is, the time it will take to set up all the logistics that this requires in the various airports of the country.
The federal government will foot the bill for the screening tests that will be imposed on travelers.
PHOTO BLAIR GABLE, REUTERS
The Minister of Health, Jean-Yves Duclos, at a press conference on Tuesday
But the Trudeau government intends to assess, together with the provinces, whether this new measure should also be extended to travelers from the United States, whether they arrive in Canada by land or air, the minister said.
“We will be working with the provinces and territories to determine how this can be done. We do not know if this will be necessary or if it can be done if the situation evolves and requires that such a policy must be implemented ”, indicated Minister Duclos.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford has previously spoken in favor of imposing a mandatory test on all travelers arriving in the country, including from the United States.
Remember that Canadians must also provide the result of a molecular screening test (a PCR test) before returning to the country, except for trips of less than 72 hours. This obligation remains in effect.
PHOTO ADRIAN WYLD, THE CANADIAN PRESS
Transport Minister Omar Alghabra at a press conference on Tuesday
Also present at the press conference, Transport Minister Omar Alghabra warned Canadians about to travel abroad that they should be aware that the Canadian government may need to adopt new measures to protect against pollution. COVID-19 that could change the conditions of return to the country.
The list goes on
Mr. Duclos also confirmed that the federal government is adding Nigeria, Malawi and Egypt to the list of seven countries already targeted by reinforced border measures following the discovery of the new variant last week in South Africa. .
Thus, foreign nationals who have traveled to these 10 countries in the last 14 days will no longer be allowed to enter Canada. As of Friday, foreign nationals who have visited South Africa, Eswatini, Lesotho, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Namibia in the past two weeks can no longer return to Canada.
For travelers who have arrived in Canada from these countries in the past two weeks, whether Canadian or foreign, they must self-isolate and be tested for COVID-19. They are required to wait for the negative result of this test before leaving their period of isolation.
As for Canadians and permanent residents who return to Canada after a stay in one of these 10 countries, they must be tested when they arrive at the Canadian border and wait for the result of their test in order to demonstrate that it is negative. They must then undergo a two-week quarantine and be tested again on the eighth day.
Last week, the Department of Foreign Affairs issued an advisory strongly discouraging all Canadians from traveling to this part of the world.
Unanswered questions
At a press conference, Minister Duclos agreed that several questions remain unanswered about the Omicron variant, which is considered of concern by the World Health Organization.
He also asked the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) to provide him with new instructions as soon as possible on the administration of a booster dose to all Canadians. “We will likely see community transmission of the new variant at some point. We do not have any evidence to demonstrate this at the moment. We have been able to detect cases of affected travelers thanks to our sanitary measures and border rules, ”the minister said.
Quebec reported 784 new cases of COVID-19 and 3 more deaths on Tuesday, while the number of intensive care patients increased. Those 784 new cases reported bring the seven-day average of new infections to 915, which is an upward trend of 26% in the past week. The three deaths bring the daily average to two. There is also a very slight increase in hospitalization in the Quebec network, ie 25 new admissions and 24 discharges during the day on Monday.