Scrapping quarantine requirements for fully vaccinated travellers 'legitimate' tool to reach herd immunity
Fully vaccinated Canadians will soon be able to travel outside of the country without having to self-isolate for 14 days or have to quarantine upon arrival.
University of Saskatchewan epidemiologist Nazeem Muhajarine says the announcement is an opening but “probably not necessarily an invitation” for people to take the first flight out of Canada.
He predicts that people will likely travel interprovincially before booking an international ticket.
“I think we have almost forgotten what it is like to board a plane ... I think it will happen slowly, it won’t happen instantly because the virus is still among us,” he said.
While optimistic about the announcement, he wishes the federal government would look at its public health measures first, such as wearing masks, before considering travel.
“What kind of precautions and public health measures should we be taking at one point in time in relation to the vaccine?”
Muhajarine says incentivizing Canadians to get vaccinated is a “legitimate” tool to exercise and a “benefit” as the country continues to reach a herd community.
In terms of reaching 80 to 85 per cent of the country getting vaccinated, he says we are “running into a wall.”
“We are running into a hard to reach, you know, our population who may hesitate still to get a vaccine or outright refuse, those hesitating people. We want to win them over,” he said.
Travellers will still have to show a negative pre-departure PCR test, and will have to take a COVID-19 test upon arriving in Canada. Once in Canada, returning travellers will still need to self-isolate until their most recent test result comes back negative.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.