Returning to the National Assembly after an absence of a few months, the Minister responsible for Seniors, Marguerite Blais, is to announce Wednesday afternoon a series of relaxations in the accommodation resources for seniors.
The Ministry of Health and Social Services has released new guidelines for “case and contact management in living environments” for the elderly or vulnerable.
From now on, users who have had COVID since December 20 will be considered protected or recovered. In all accommodation resources, they will no longer have to isolate themselves after contact with a case of COVID-19.
Residents infected with the virus will have to isolate themselves for five days after the onset of symptoms, with the exception of those who live in CHSLDs or intermediate resources. In the latter two cases, the isolation period will increase to ten days.
Asymptomatic users who have had a low or moderate risk exposure in the community will no longer have to isolate themselves either. In all settings however, symptom monitoring will be required for 14 days.
For so-called “close” contacts, preventive isolation for five or ten days will be required, depending on whether or not the user is adequately vaccinated.
Are considered “close contacts” users who have stayed in the same environment as a confirmed case of COVID-19 “within two meters and without barrier measures” or users who have “received care within two meters for 10 minutes or more” from a health care worker who did not wear his protective equipment properly during his period of contagiousness.
Isolation, “worse than COVID”
After the announcement of the gradual withdrawal of the vaccine passport on Tuesday, the Quebec Regrouping of Residences for Seniors (RPA) was impatiently awaiting that concerning relaxations in accommodation environments. Its president, Marc Fortin, reminded the Duty Tuesday that RPA residents all had to confine themselves as soon as there were two cases of COVID-19 in a living environment.
“There have been very few hospitalizations in RPAs: 99% of seniors are vaccinated three times. So the vaccination is working and people were confined to 250, 300 square foot apartments or spaces,” he pointed out. “The lockdown has had more negative impacts than COVID itself,” he added.
The rules surrounding visitor access — prohibited except in the case of caregivers — have also made headlines on several occasions.
More details will follow.