Good evening, these are the top coronavirus headlines tonight:
Top headlines:
- While we may have envisioned the end of the pandemic having a defining, celebratory moment, life is instead returning to normal with a maskless whimper, writes Marsha Lederman
- You asked, we answered: The Decibel posed your COVID-19 questions to Dr. Lisa Barrett, who tackled questions like, how do you tell if you have COVID, a flu or a cold?
- Travellers to Canada no longer need to show proof of vaccination against COVID-19, and wearing a mask on planes and trains is optional, as of last Saturday
COVID-19 updates from Canada and the world
- Infectious disease specialist Dr. Lisa Barrett talks with The Decibel to answer your COVID-19 questions. These are just some of the topics addressed on the episode: When you get sick, is there any way to tell if it’s COVID-19 or the flu or a cold? How long should you isolate if you have COVID-19? What’s the right time frame to get a bivalent vaccine – and what does bivalent mean?
- More American lawmakers are calling for the White House to end vaccination rules at the Canada-U.S. land border. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and Rep. Brian Higgins have written to urge President Joe Biden to “reciprocate” Canada’s new COVID-19 border policy.
- The Canadian Armed Forces has required since December that all troops receive two shots of a recognized COVID-19 vaccine. And as vaccine restrictions ease across the country, Defence Minister Anita Anand is standing by the mandate.
- The Ontario science table’s final report is highlighting long-standing challenges in the province that pose a threat to the routine functioning of the health system, and to future pandemic preparedness. “Our hope is that through any potential future waves of this pandemic, that high-quality primary care is a centrepiece of the response,” Fahad Razak, the outgoing scientific director of the old table, said.
- In Alberta, candidates vying to become the next UCP leader and premier have defined themselves by their attitude toward COVID-19. Danielle Smith, a former leader of the Wildrose Party, has put the most distance between herself and the provincial government’s pandemic policies, frequently citing them as she argues for her proposed sovereignty act.
- Alberta Health Services says more MRI and CT scans are being completed now than before the COVID-19 pandemic – adding there has been a sharp increase in demand for emergency CT scans for COVID-19 patients, and it’s expected to rise again as winter approaches.
- Quebec Leader François Legault’s government awarded major American consulting firm McKinsey & Company $35,000 a day for strategies on managing the COVID-19 pandemic. A Radio-Canada investigation published Friday revealed McKinsey billed the Quebec government $6.6-million and played a key role in the Quebec government’s pandemic response. Meanwhile, new COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations are on the rise in Quebec, prompting the province to make the influenza vaccine available earlier than usual, to protect people from both.
- A Japanese health ministry panel on Wednesday recommended approving Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for children as young as six months old. The panel also recommended approval of a version of the Pfizer vaccine that protects against the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants of Omicron. Moderna said earlier on Wednesday it was seeking Japanese approval of its own subvariant shot.
- Indonesia said it has granted emergency use approval of the China-made Walvax Biotechnology mRNA vaccine, becoming the first country, ahead of even China, to do so.
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Pandemic recovery
- People coming to Canada who haven’t been vaccinated against COVID-19 will no longer need to isolate upon arrival. Rules around mandatory testing, masking and usage of the ArriveCan app also weren’t renewed starting Oct. 1.
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Globe opinion
Marsha Lederman: The end of the pandemic isn’t what we had imagined
Jen Gerson: Danielle Smith’s rise has been fuelled by Albertans marginalized by COVID-19 restrictions
Amil Niazi: The unparalleled possibilities of taking kids to museums, after two years of restricted access during the pandemic
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More reading
- In Alabama, an overlooked COVID-19 success story
- Ringo Starr cancels Western Canada shows after catching COVID-19
- Thanksgiving dinner doesn’t have to be stressful: A fool-proof guide to hosting
Information centre
- Everything you need to know about Canada’s travel rules for vaccinated and unvaccinated people
- When will COVID-19 be endemic? The four factors that will shape the virus’s future
- Wastewater is filling the COVID-19 data gap
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