Delta variant

Canadian hospitals and health systems are still struggling through the ebb and flow of COVID-19, leading to long delays for elective procedures, new data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information shows.

Hospitals across Canada are facing a resurgence of patients with COVID-19 that some health officials say will likely continue for another month.

A pill to treat COVID-19 appears to be the country's best hope, outside of vaccines and strong public health measures, to keep hospitals from being overrun with cases of the virus now and in the future, doctors say.

"Because Omicron is so different, previous infection doesn't protect you," Saskatchewan's chief medical health officer, Dr. Saqib Shahab, said last week.

Experts say rapid antigen tests are emerging as an important tool as Canada's pandemic strategy shifts from public health vigilance to an emphasis on personal responsibility.

Perks in the vaxxed only room include private washrooms, servers who are also fully vaccinated, and a ventilation system separate from the restaurant’s main room, which can seat another 200 people both vaccinated and non−vaccinated.

Kenney said strong vaccination rates, declining hospital cases and a continued drop in the spread of the Omicron variant make it possible to end the passport.

Through most of the COVID-19 pandemic, Atlantic Canada won international praise for the region's largely successful efforts to keep infection rates low — but the arrival of Omicron has upended its vaunted COVID-Zero strategy.

Quebec Premier François Legault has announced the reimposition of a 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew that begins tonight, New Year's Eve, and will remain in effect indefinitely.

The Opposition in Alberta hopes to build on a buoyant 2021 during which the New Democrats outpaced Premier Jason Kenney’s United Conservatives in popularity polls and fundraising.

Neither Doug Ford nor Jason Kenney display the intestinal fortitude needed to stare down anti-vaccine skeptics and do what’s required to protect our hospitals and health-care system, writes columnist Max Fawcett.

Canada has recorded its 30,000th COVID-19 death since the pandemic began in early 2020, surpassing a grim milestone just as the country braces for the potential fallout of surging infections driven by the Omicron variant.

The federal government on Wednesday, December 15, 2021, advised Canadians against non-essential international travel in an effort to protect against the Omicron variant, while Ontario and Quebec announced thousands of new COVID-19 infections.

The lightning spread of the Omicron COVID-19 variant is prompting federal politicians to reconsider the wisdom of having several hundred MPs crammed together in the House of Commons.

Rapid COVID-19 tests can help stop transmission and could be valuable tools in workplaces and schools, Ontario experts said Thursday, while Quebec announced test kits for kids amid calls for their expanded use.