Will COVID-19 restrictions come back in B.C.? Top doctor says no
B.C. will likely see a spike in COVID-19 infections in the fall but the province's top doctor says she doesn’t anticipate bringing back restrictions.
In an update Tuesday, Dr. Bonnie Henry said health officials are already anticipating what might come with colder weather and the next cold and flu season.
"I think we're going to be in a period of relative ease for the next little while. But we all have to pay attention to what might happen in the fall," she said. "We need to be prepared that we're going to see a surge."
However, she said the province is unlikely to see a return to mask mandates, limits on gatherings or other measures the province has brought in at previous points in the pandemic.
"There are things that we'll have to go back to, to remember. I hope and I expect that we'll never have to put in orders again that require people to do those things like we did when we didn't know what was going on over the last two and a half years," she said.
"But we will rely on each other to take those measures when we start to see an increase in transmission again."
Henry also said she expects to see more influenza circulating this fall and winter because people are travelling and socializing more freely than they have since the pandemic was first declared.
"We need to plan for what's coming. I’m concerned and working with my team to look at what are the possible scenarios that we may face given our situation, our demographics, and our immunity levels here when we get into the next respiratory season," she said.
This look forward came amid reminders from Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix that the virus is still causing hospitalizations and deaths. Henry noted the more than one million recorded deaths in the U.S. as a grim reminder of the toll the disease can take.
"If we look around Canada, we have not had that level of devastation, that tragedy. But we've had enough," Henry said.
Both repeatedly called on British Columbians to get vaccinated and boosted in order to protect against severe illness. More than a million people who have been invited to book a third dose have not yet done so, they said.
Henry also noted how widespread infection has become since the arrival of the Omicron variant in the province and the lifting of restrictions.
"As we come together more frequently with more people, the virus has more opportunity to spread. And we are seeing that, I don't think anybody I know hasn't known somebody who has had it," Henry said, although she did say she herself has not yet been infected.
Dix said the commonness of infection is still putting strain on the health-care system, although not to the same extent as during the early peak of the Omicron wave. Patients are still being hospitalized, and sickness-related absences are still causing staffing issues.
"It is still having effects. Those effects are different but they continue to challenge our health-care system and health-care professionals and health-care workers everywhere."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
One dead after potential wrong way crash on Highway 401 in Milton: OPP
One person is dead and another is in life-threatening condition after a driver was travelling in the wrong direction on Highway 401 in Milton Sunday, according to police.
Trudeau 'absolutely' best person to lead the Liberals in next election: LeBlanc insists
Cabinet minister Dominic LeBlanc insists he's not planning a leadership campaign to head the Liberal party, should current leader and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau resign, seemingly quashing rumours he's planning to make a move for his boss' job.
Montreal man on the hook for thousands of dollars after a feature on his Tesla caused an accident
A Montreal man is warning Tesla drivers about using the Smart Summon feature after his vehicle hit another in a parking lot.
Video shows gaggle of geese stopping traffic on Highway 1 near Vancouver
A mother goose and her goslings caused a bit of a traffic jam on a busty stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway near Vancouver Saturday.
'The Fall Guy' gives Hollywood a muted summer kickoff with a US$28.5M opening
"The Fall Guy," the Ryan Gosling-led, action-comedy ode to stunt performers, opened below expectations with US$28.5 million, according to studio estimates Sunday, providing a lukewarm start to a summer movie season that's very much to be determined for Hollywood.
Madonna's biggest-ever concert transforms Rio's Copacabana beach into a massive dance floor
Madonna put on a free concert on Copacabana beach Saturday night, turning Rio de Janeiro's vast stretch of sand into an enormous dance floor teeming with a multitude of her fans.
William Shatner says he would consider 'Star Trek' return: 'Here comes Captain Kirk!'
The Montreal-born actor, famed for his portrayal of Captain Kirk in "Star Trek," says he is open to reprising the iconic role in the sci-fi franchise as long as the storytelling is stellar.
opinion You don't need to be an influencer to earn income from social media
How legitimate are claims by some content creators that the average person can earn passive income from social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram? Personal finance columnist Christopher Liew says it's quite possible, if you're willing to put in the initial time and effort.
‘Love has no boundaries’: Sask. couple in their 90s and 80s get married
Eighty-two-year-old Susan Neufeldt and 90-year-old Ulrich Richter are no spring chickens, but their love blossomed over the weekend with their wedding at Pine View Manor just outside of Rosthern.