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How Canada is monitoring COVID-19 in 2020

The Public Health Agency of Canada is working with provinces, territories and international partners, including the World Health Organization, to actively monitor the situation. Global efforts are focused on containment of the outbreak and the prevention of further spread.
Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer of Canada is in close contact with provincial and territorial Chief Medical Officers of Health to ensure that any cases of COVID-19 occurring in Canada continue to be rapidly identified and managed in order to protect the health of Canadians.
Canada’s National Microbiology Laboratory is performing diagnostic testing for the virus that causes COVID-19. The laboratory is working in close collaboration with provincial and territorial public health laboratories, which are now able to test for COVID-19. This summary of people tested in Canada is updated once a day.

Canada had at least 100k confirmed cases of Covid-19 across all provinces as of Monday morning. There are an additional 17 presumptive cases.
Three new deaths linked to the virus were reported, bringing the total fatalities in Canada to four, all in the province of British Columbia.
Mr Trudeau addressed Canadians outside his residence. He is in self-isolation after his wife, Sophie, tested positive last week for the coronavirus.
Last week, Canada asked citizens to avoid all non-essential travel and urged travellers to return home where possible. All returning Canadians are being asked to self-isolate for two weeks.

What is the Canada Emergency Response Benefit?

The Canada Emergency Response Benefit provides temporary income support to workers who have stopped working related to COVID-19.
Individuals who are eligible for Employment Insurance regular or sickness benefits, or who have recently exhausted Employment Insurance regular or fishing benefits may also be eligible.
The new Canada Emergency Response Benefit provides $500 per week for a maximum of 24 weeks.
The Benefit is available from March 15, 2020, to October 3, 2020. You can apply no later than December 2, 2020 for payments retroactive to within that period.

Why is the Canada Emergency Response Benefit being extended?

The Canada Emergency Response Benefit was put in place by the Government of Canada to ensure Canadians had timely and efficient support when they needed it most for reasons related to COVID-19. The Government of Canada’s priority continues to be to ensure that Canadians can access the support they need.
While we are seeing positive progress in the number of people returning to the workforce, many Canadians continue to face challenges getting back to work. As well, the restart of the economy is uneven across the country and sectors. Many Canadians may still be out of work and still need temporary income support.
Therefore, the Government of Canada is extending the CERB by 8 weeks to a maximum of 24 weeks, at the current benefit rate of $500/week to ensure workers continue to get much needed support as they transition back to work.

  • Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has stated that Canada is exploring easing travel restrictions that currently prevent some individuals from crossing the U.S. border to enter Canada to reunite with their family.
  • Trudeau made the remarks during his daily coronavirus briefing to the Canadian public on Friday May 29.
  • The Canada-U.S. border was first closed to non-essential travel effective Saturday March 20th by mutual agreement as both countries sought to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
  • The travel restrictions were initially put in place for 30 days, but have since been extended on two occasions, including most recently on May 20th.
  • Among those exempt from the travel restrictions include essential workers, and immediate family members of Canadian citizens and permanent residents, as long as said family members are travelling to Canada for non-discretionary purposes.
  • Immediate family members have been defined as spouses, common-law partners, dependent children, grandchildren, parents, step-parents, guardians, and tutors.
  • Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) has been provided guidelines on how to define non-discretionary travel.
  • CBSA is turning away immediate family from entering Canada if it deems the purpose of the trip to be non-essential.
  • During his remarks, Trudeau recognized the challenging nature of the restrictions for families and said he was hoping to seek a resolution.
  • However, he noted that easing travel restrictions is cause for concern among Canada’s provinces, who he has been consulting with on this matter.
  • In fact, Trudeau noted that this issue was brought up as recently as the evening of Thursday May 28 when he spoke with provincial premiers.
  • According to the Prime Minister, some premiers expressed openness to easing travel rules for families on grounds of compassion, while other premiers felt that doing so could make efforts to contain COVID-19 more challenging.
  • Trudeau concluded by saying that the federal and provincial governments will continue to explore this topic while keeping the safety and security of Canadians at the forefront of the ultimate decision that is taken.
  • Canada has had special immigration, visa, and travel measures in place since the middle of March.

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