Hinshaw to make unspecified recommendations to cabinet; new measures expected from Kenney Tuesday
Hinshaw #Hinshaw
Alberta’s top doctor vowed to recommend new restrictions to Premier Jason Kenney and his government on Monday aimed at slowing the rapid spread of COVID-19 in the province, but it’s unclear what direction the province will take.
Chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw’s advice comes as Alberta reported another 1,549 new COVID-19 cases and five deaths connected to the novel coronavirus on Monday.
Those fatalities included a woman in her 50s linked to the outbreak at Intercare Chinook Care Centre in Calgary and a man in his 70s linked to the outbreak at Peter Lougheed Centre. Alberta has recorded 476 deaths related to COVID-19 since March.
As of Monday, there were 13,166 active cases of COVID-19 across Alberta, including 4,845 infections in Alberta Health Services’ Calgary zone. The new cases reported came from 19,474 tests, representing a positivity rate of nearly eight per cent.
There were 328 COVID-19 patients across the province being hospitalized, of which 62 people — a new record — were being treated in intensive care units.
Hinshaw said health officials “absolutely expect” those figures to rise, creating further strain on the public health system, over the coming two to three weeks.
“It’s clear that we have reached a precarious point in Alberta. The virus is spreading faster and more widely than at any other point during the pandemic,” Hinshaw said.
“This is like a snowball rolling down a hill, growing bigger and faster, and it will continue unless we implement strong measures to stop. We must take action. Waiting any longer will impact our ability to care for Albertans in the weeks and months ahead.”
Monday’s briefing followed four consecutive days of record-breaking COVID-19 statistics in the province. Alberta reported a high of 1,584 cases of the novel coronavirus on Sunday .
Hinshaw said she would provide her advice to Kenney, along with other members of cabinet, on Monday afternoon.
A detailed update on new measures is expected Tuesday morning. Hinshaw said she plans to hold media availabilities each day this week to update the public on the province’s strategy.
But it’s unclear what those new measures will look like. When asked during Monday’s news conference, Hinshaw declined to specify her recommendations, such as whether non-essential businesses could be forced to close or whether more targeted restrictions might be in the cards.
She said “there are a variety of options for consideration.”
“There’s no one single way through this pandemic and the decisions around COVID-19 restrictions are very challenging,” she said.
“My role is to provide advice and recommendations and the role of elected officials is to make decisions on those policy options.”
Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi has renewed calls for Kenney and the Alberta government to enact stronger measures after last week’s record-setting data.
“We have a plan that the province put out in the summer, but they’re clearly not following it anymore, in terms of what triggers will lead to what actions,” Nenshi said Monday.
“So it’s completely opaque. I’m not sure they know how they’re making decisions or what decisions they want to make. We ask a lot. We offer our assistance a lot. Sometimes that’s listened to, sometimes it isn’t, but I will be as surprised as anybody when the announcements are made (Tuesday) — if they’re made (Tuesday).”
Nenshi called on the province “to make drastic change to flatten the curve.”
“People shouldn’t wait for government to do the right thing,” the mayor said.
“We need to start collapsing our bubbles now, we need to start working from home as much as possible, staying home as much as possible. That said, the government of Alberta needs to take bold action, and they need to do so right now.”
A poll released Monday by ThinkHQ Public Affairs showed there’s widespread support in Alberta for stronger measures aimed at curbing spread of the virus.
More than 80 per cent of those surveyed said they would approve of a province-wide mandatory mask rule, compared to only 16 per cent who would oppose it. While some cities like Calgary and Edmonton have instituted their own face-covering mandates, Alberta is the only province that hasn’t done so.
More than 60 per cent of Albertans would approve of a “circuit breaker lockdown,” similar to the orders imposed across the country in the spring, according to the survey. That would include a shutdown of all non-essential businesses in the province for 14 to 28 days.
Just 31 per cent of those polled are opposed to this option.
More than half of those interviewed feel measures imposed Nov. 12 don’t go far enough.
Hinshaw was asked whether Alberta should have introduced stronger restrictions earlier on to avoid current levels of COVID-19 spread.
“Alberta is not unique in the experience of having an increase in cases over the past several months, but particularly the past several weeks it’s been accelerating,” she said.
“I think that the benefit — the only benefit — of looking backwards is to help us learn more about how to better move forwards.”
Changes to contact tracing
With cases continuing to mount in recent weeks, Hinshaw said Alberta’s case investigation and contact tracing system has become overwhelmed.
She said Alberta Health’s contact tracers haven’t been able to keep up with current demand, leading to a slowly growing backlog of cases.
As a temporary measure, effective Tuesday, if 10 days have passed since an Albertan received their positive COVID-19 test result, AHS will no longer call that individual to conduct case investigation and contact tracing.
All Albertans who test positive will receive a text message instead of a phone call at the time of their isolation period ending.
“We are left with an incredibly difficult problem to solve,” Hinshaw said.
“In order to maximize the effectiveness of the team, I have asked to start with the most recently diagnosed cases and work backwards.”
Hinshaw said it’s vital to use contact tracers “where they have the greatest impact.”
“I am sorry that this change will leave a group of people without the opportunity to have a conversation with AHS to understand where they acquired the infection and how to better prevent onward spread.”
— With files from Madeline Smith
shudes@postmedia.com
Twitter: @SammyHudes