The federal government has approved an Ottawa company's made-in-Canada rapid COVID-19 test, Health Canada confirmed on Saturday, January 23, 2021, as the nation's top doctor warned the virus's impact on the health-care system showed no signs of abating.
The B.C. government says a review of legal options has made it clear it cannot prevent people from travelling to the province from elsewhere in Canada.
British Columbia's decision to seek legal advice on limiting travel reinforces the message that it isn't the time to go on vacation across the country, Canada's chief medical officer of health said on Friday, January 15, 2021.
The federal government has ordered that anyone applying for COVID-19 benefits will need to report whether they have recently travelled outside of the country — though it isn’t clear how it will catch and penalize any cheaters.
Airlines and travellers say a slew of questions remain about the federal government's decision to require passengers returning to Canada to show negative results on COVID-19 tests taken abroad.
The COVID-19 fallout from the festive season continues to emerge, with several provinces reporting spikes in infections as more jet-setting politicians are taken to task for flouting public health warnings discouraging non-essential travel.
Authorities are cautioning Canadians against getting swept up in the excitement of the approaching COVID-19 vaccine rollout, insisting that dropping our guards could have deadly consequences as federal forecasts predict the outbreak's death toll could hit nearly 15,000 come Christmas Day.
COVID-19's second wave tightened its grip on the Prairies on Monday, November 23, 2020, while two eastern provinces pulled out of the Atlantic bubble in an effort to rein in the virus.