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British Columbians ages 18 to 30 most affected by pandemic, need support: BCCDC report

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British Columbia’s young adults are most likely to be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to layoffs, restrictions and lost job opportunities, according to a detailed new report from the B.C. Centre for Disease Control.

The agency released “Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Health and Well-Being of Young Adults in British Columbia” on Friday, outlining the challenges faced by those ages 18 to 30, as well as recommendations for supports. 

“Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and the measures stemming from efforts to control it, have had significant and deleterious impacts on many areas of young adults’ lives,” noted the authors. “Those who may be subject to additional pressures include racialized groups, LGBTQ2S+ individuals, and young adults with disabilities.”

The report was commissioned by one of the province’s top health officials.

"Unlike COVID-19, which can be measured on a dashboard – we report on it every day – these can go hidden and it is our responsibility in a pandemic response to look more deeply and make sure every consequence of what we do is measured,” said deputy provincial health officer Dr. Reka Gustafson. "This is a really important stage in life where you establish your family or meet that person. This is when you become an individual. This is when you establish many of your educational and employment trajectories."

She said young adults were also more likely to lose their jobs and have their post-secondary education – and therefore future career prospects – disrupted, along with financial strain and concern for the future.

The conclusions include findings from national and international studies, but rely heavily on two “COVID-19 Speak Surveys” done by B.C. health officials, which asked people to describe how the pandemic has impacted their lives. The report is an in-depth look at the social impacts of the pandemic, separate and distinct from analysis of who was most vulnerable to death or severe illness from the virus.

CONTRAST TO PREMIER’S ‘DON’T BLOW IT’ COMMENTS

Premier John Horgan enraged young adults in the spring when he urged them not to “blow it for the rest of us” by acting selfishly and being the top demographic for COVID-19 infections.

The study’s authors point out that, while their infection rate is double the provincial average, adults aged 18 to 30 were also more likely to work frontline jobs that can’t be done from home, are more likely to live in close quarters with roommates, and reported the highest rates of mental health concerns.

“Many of the activities we restricted actually were essential for the lives of young adults,” said Gustafson. “Some of the things highlighted in our report affect every young adult and I think that's really important."

When CTV News noted that much of the criticism of young adults came from adults with established careers – often living in homes with yards – who were able to weather the restrictions and self-isolate with less impact on their lives, Gustafson agreed. She said that’s why governments, employers and institutions of all kinds need to realize how much of their relatively young lives were put on hold and offer financial, educational and mental health supports.

"Alcohol and cannabis consumption have increased, there's been significant social isolation, very significant disruption in isolation and employment," she said, adding that there was plenty of struggle and suffering to go around, especially for parents of young children.

“There was significant stress, especially during school closures and loss of daycare during that first wave of the pandemic,” she added. “We tried to mitigate that as much as possible.”

Gustafson added that few older teens and 20-somethings are at the decision-making table, so she felt it was important to raise issues affecting them and call for a special focus on those issues, including employment, training opportunities, debt loads, educational impacts, mental health and emotional disruptions. 

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