Good evening, here are the COVID-19 updates you need to know tonight.
Top headlines:
- WHO now ‘strongly supports’ COVID-19 vaccine booster shots, reversing previous statement that boosters weren’t necessary for healthy people and contributed to vaccine inequity
- Winnipeg zoo giving COVID-19 vaccine to 55 animals including tigers and snow leopards
- Transport Canada fines unvaccinated passengers on Sunwing party flight
In the past seven days, 37,519 cases were reported, down 8 per cent from the previous seven days. There were 415 deaths announced, down 16 per cent over the same period. At least 4,262 people are being treated in hospitals.
Canada’s inoculation rate is 13th among countries with a population of one million or more people.
Sources: Canada data is compiled from government websites, Johns Hopkins and COVID-19 Canada Open Data Working Group; international data is from Johns Hopkins University.
Coronavirus explainers: Coronavirus in maps and charts • Tracking vaccine doses • Lockdown rules and reopening
Photo of the day
A man stands at the entrance of a cabin at a temporary isolation facility to house COVID-19 patients in the Tsing Yi district of Hong Kong on March 8.DALE DE LA REY/AFP/Getty Images
Coronavirus in Canada
- In Manitoba, the Winnipeg zoo is giving a COVID-19 vaccine to 55 animals that are considered to be at greater risk of contracting the virus, including primates, big cats such as tigers and snow leopards and those that have closer interaction with human caregivers.
- Alberta children between the ages of 12 and 17 can receive a booster shot of the COVID-19 vaccine starting next week, as long as there has been a minimum five months since their second dose.
- Ontario is reporting 779 people in hospital with COVID-19 today, and 246 in intensive care.
- Quebec is reporting 29 more deaths attributed to COVID-19 today and 1,252 patients are hospitalized with the disease.
- Starting March 17, Prince Edward Island will be easing more COVID-19 restrictions, including increasing the limit on personal outdoor gatherings from 20 people to 50 people and allowing retail stores, fitness facilities, museums, casinos and libraries to operate at 75 per cent capacity instead of 50 per cent.
Transport Canada has fined some of the passengers who partied aboard a Sunwing flight from Montreal to Cancun, Mexico last year.
- The Federal Transport Department said Tuesday it issued fines against a half-dozen passengers who were not vaccinated when they boarded the day before New Year’s Eve. The fines could reach a maximum of $5,000 each.
- Under COVID-19 rules, all passengers must be fully vaccinated to board a flight departing the country.
Coronavirus around the world
- In the U.S., Florida is recommending against the COVID-19 vaccine for healthy children – breaking with guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
- The World Health Organization said Tuesday it supports booster doses amid the global spread of Omicron, reversing previous guidance saying that boosters weren’t necessary and contributed to vaccine inequity.
- Coronavirus cases in New Zealand hit a new daily record of nearly 24,000 on Tuesday. Across the country, the explosion in cases has left people stunned. Just a month ago, case numbers were around 200 per day. Now, the outbreak is affecting everyone from front line workers to lawmakers.
Coronavirus and business
After a gruelling two years of travel restrictions, Air Transat and Porter Airlines have signed a code-sharing agreement they hope will draw customers to a wider range of connecting flights in Canada and abroad.
- Porter resumed flights in September for the first time since March 2020 after grounding its fleet due to COVID-19 restrictions.
- Transat AT, which depends on trips to sun destinations in winter and European cities in summer, lost $886-million in its last two fiscal years as the pandemic bled cash from the tour operator.
Also: While it’s clear that working women – and working mothers in particular – have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, the normalization of remote work may prove beneficial to their lives going forward.
Information centre
- Everything you need to know about Canada’s travel restrictions for vaccinated and unvaccinated people
- Where do I book a COVID-19 booster or a vaccine appointment for my kids? Latest rules by province
- What is and isn't 'paid sick leave' in Canada? A short primer
- Got a vaccine 'hangover'? Here's why
Sources: Canada data are compiled from government websites, Johns Hopkins University and COVID-19 Canada Open Data Working Group; international data are from Johns Hopkins.
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