COVID-19

Federal Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos says Canada is in crisis when it comes to COVID-19 PCR testing capacity, as Ottawa struggles to make good on its promise to deliver 140 million rapid tests to provinces by the end of the month.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Wednesday, January 12, 2022, he needs more information before he can say whether he supports Quebec’s anti-vaccination tax, as Ottawa struggled to make good on its promise to deliver COVID-19 rapid tests.

Only days before Canadian truck drivers were required to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 to get into the country or face quarantine, the federal government is backing away from the vaccine mandate.

Advocates working with Black and Indigenous communities say a proposal to make unvaccinated adults pay a financial penalty risks further entrenching inequities in Canada's pandemic response, and adding another burden to those who are marginalized.

The association says the tax plan is deeply troubling, noting the Charter of Rights and Freedoms recognizes individual autonomy over our bodies and medical decisions.

A new poll suggests a slim majority of Canadians support the latest round of lockdowns and other government-imposed restrictions as the Omicron variant continue to fuel an explosion in new COVID-19 infections.

Health experts and government critics are calling on the prime minister and premiers to fix cracks in Canada's health system and improve surge capacity as the COVID-19 pandemic continues.

Quebec's director of public health, Dr. Horacio Arruda, tendered his resignation on Monday, January 10, 2022, citing an erosion in public trust as the province grapples with record hospitalizations during a fifth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The rampant spread of the Omicron variant has stoked alarm across the border, where the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a fresh Level 4 "avoid travel" advisory for Canada, citing a "very high" level of COVID-19 in the country and urging anyone who must go to be fully vaccinated.

As Quebec officials consider tightening the rules for the unvaccinated, health experts in the province say expanding the vaccine passport system is justified because of the high number of COVID-19 patients in hospital who have refused to be jabbed.

Hospitals in several parts of Canada are straining under the weight of the Omicron variant of COVID-19, with Quebec hospitalizations reaching an all-time high on Sunday, January 9, 2022, and Ontario's admissions to intensive care units surging past the 400 mark.

Videos shared online of the raucous party on a Dec. 30 Montreal-Cancun charter flight sparked anger from politicians and an investigation by Transport Canada in conjunction with the federal health and public safety departments.

The Canadian jobs market was fairly flat in December, with Ontario the source of most growth and youth jobs back at pre-pandemic levels. But the survey data was taken before the rapid spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 led to school closures and renewed restrictions.

Record-breaking COVID-19 case numbers and hospitalizations are challenging Canadians