In our top story: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said a number of new measures around travel are being considered as other countries enact their own with the rise of new COVID-19 variants. Earlier Tuesday he said nothing was off the table to protect Canadians. Exactly what measures and when they’ll be announced is not clear. Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister was not prepared to wait, however, and announced today tough new rules for anyone entering the province. Mike Le Couteur reports.
More cases of the new variants are being reported every day in Canada, including dozens of suspected cases in a long-term care home reported Tuesday in Ontario. A growing number of cases have no known link to someone who recently travelled to another country — that’s an indication of community spread. Eric Sorensen reports on what we do know and don’t know about these knew variants.
With vaccines the big focus right now, there’s been less talk of rapid testing. But experts say the devices are key in the fight to stop and contain dangerous outbreaks. The federal government says it has procured tens of millions of rapid tests, but only a small portion are actually in use in Canada. And as Abigail Bimman reports, access depends on where you live.
A Canadian pharmaceutical company has announced Phase 1 human trials will soon begin for its COVID-19 vaccine. Providence Therapeutics says its messenger RNA vaccine would be manufactured in Calgary making it the first completely made-in-Canada COVID-19 vaccine candidate. It’s promising news, but as Heather Yourex-West explains, it’s at least a year away.
There’s another potential vaccine hurdle on the horizon for Canada. The European Union is threatening to block exports of vaccines to countries outside Europe and it’s accused AstraZeneca of failing to guarantee delivery of its vaccine without a valid explanation. It’s a sign the distribution of vaccines is becoming more protectionist and political. Redmond Shannon looks at what this could mean for Canada.
Outrage is growing over a wealthy Vancouver couple’s shocking trip to Yukon Territory where they allegedly got vaccinated for COVID-19. They’re accused of violating quarantine rules and taking the vaccine from local residents in a remote, at-risk community. It took a lot of planning, but someone in the small town noticed something was off about the couple. Robin Gill reports.
