January
COVID-19 (2020) Pandemic
Timeline : January 2020
January 20th, 2020:
China has just reported 278 cases of Coronavirus; leaving 51 people in severely ill, 12 in critical condition, and 6 dead.
Chinese President Xi Jinping makes his first public announcement regarding Coronavirus, warning citizens that this outbreak must be taken seriously and that all governments should be prioritizing its citizens' health above all.
Canada's Chief Public Health Officer, Dr. Theresa Tam, responds to the news by stating, “It is important to take this seriously, and be vigilant and be prepared. But I don’t think there’s reason for us to panic or be overly concerned” (Staples, 2020a).
January 22nd, 2020:
Canada begins the implementation of low-intensity screening protocols at airports for flights incoming from Wuhan to Montréal, Toronto, and Vancouver.
Passengers who show symptoms are requested to go into voluntary 14-day isolation.
January 23rd, 2020:
The WHO conducts an emergency committee teleconference with Health Ministers from China, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, and Canada with Dr. Theresa Tam as the Canadian advisor for the committee.
The committee was split down the middle on whether further action was required for the current Coronavirus outbreak. It is noted that “several members considered that it is still too early to declare a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, given its restrictive and binary nature” (Staples, 2020a).
It is unknown which side Dr. Tam argued towards. However, after the teleconference, Dr. Tam insisted to Ottawa MPs that the risk for Canada was very low.
January 26th, 2020:
China restricts all non-essential travel to and from Wuhan
Canada simply advises against any non-essential travel to Wuhan, China.
January 27th, 2020:
The Government confirms the first case of COVID-19 in Canada.
MP Matt Jeneroux is the first to ask questions to the House of Commmons on the matter, wondering how Canadians can currently feel confident that the spread of the outbreak is being contained?
Federal Health Minister, Patty Hajdu, reaffirms that “The risk to Canadians remains low. Our systems continue to work extremely closely together” (Staples, 2020a).
MP Todd Doherty continues the questioning to Hajdu by stating “Every day thousands of passengers from China and elsewhere in Asia arrive at our ports of entry: Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto. Often times, they board domestic flights and connect throughout Canada and elsewhere in North America. Calling the coronavirus a grave situation, China has quarantined whole cities and millions of people. The WHO has now listed the global threat as high. The safety of Canadians is currently dependent upon screening in China and self-reporting by infected passengers. When will the government institute a real plan that includes an enhanced screening process?” (Staples, 2020a).
Hajdu responses to the questioning by expressing how ahead Canadain protocols has been in comparison to the WHO, and continuing to establish that passengers with symptoms are being given the proper tools to minimize any risk of spread.
January 29th, 2020:
During the Parliamentary Health Committee, MP Marcus Powlowski (a doctor from Thunder Bay, ON) asks Dr. Tam “The BBC was reporting today that their ministry of health was asking all people coming from China to voluntarily self-isolate for two weeks upon returning to the country, I think because the idea is that it got out of Wuhan. When you look at the numbers and what’s happening in China, it’s not isolated to Wuhan. It would seem to me to be a fairly feasible thing for us to do, and a precautionary thing, to have anyone coming from China self-isolate for two weeks. Have you considered making that recommendation, potentially under the Quarantine Act?" (Staples, 2020a).
Dr. Tam replied defending her current stance on voluntary self-isolation only for passengers expressing COVID-19 symptoms as identified in provided information packets at airports.
However, Powlowski continues, noting that The New York Times was already reporting on cases where it is still contagious during the incubation period and that many were expressing asymptotic spread of the disease.
Dr. Tam responds with the assurance that Canada is working closely with the WHO and that “They know they have to get to the bottom of this, but we do know that even people with mild symptoms don’t transmit very readily. Could they? It’s possible, but that’s not what drives an actual epidemic … I think we have to be reasonable in our public measures and just balance out the risks and benefits. In terms of the impacts, they are not simply health impacts, but psychological and other health impacts, as well as non-health impacts, those being societal and economic as well" (Staples, 2020a).
Later at the Health Committee, MP Pierre Paul-Hus requests for self-isolation for passengers from infected regions, regardless of symptoms. He elaborates on the matter by explaining, “People are coming into the country without symptoms, and going back to their homes. You say that the provinces are in charge of screening, as they see fit. Can you be a little clearer about that? With an event like this, I wonder whether the Government of Canada has stricter authority than the provinces.” (Staples, 2020a).
Dr. Tam once again reiterates to the Committee that information and protocols are already in place at airports to manage the disease, expressing her stance that “We do know that asymptomatic people are not the key driver of epidemics. That is very important to understand.” (Staples, 2020a).
Dr. Tam then continued to downplay the severity of the situation by stating, “As I have always said, the epidemic of fear could be more difficult to control than the epidemic itself ... Right now, the cases are in China. Very few are exported. Yes, there’s human-to-human transmission, but those are generally for close contacts. With regard to the severity of illness, there are some severe cases, but the deaths have occurred in older people with underlying medical conditions. With all of that pulled together, for the general public who have not been to China, the risk is low in Canada” (Staples, 2020a).
Dr. Tam holds firms on her position of not supporting travel bans, elaborating that “Canada’s risk is much, much lower than that of many countries. It’s going to be rare, but we are expecting cases. It doesn’t matter how few those cases are. We are preparing the whole country in the event that you might pick up a rare case. That actually is what we’re doing right now, preparing. It is going to be rare, but you’re going to have some" (Staples, 2020a).
January 30th, 2020:
The WHO declares a Global Health Emergency
January 31st, 2020:
In the House of Commons, MP Don Davies makes a note on the update from the WHO, expressing his concern that the reasoning behind the advancement of COVID-19 to becoming a Global Health Emergency, stems from nations being not prepared to handle the upcoming situation.
Health Minister, Petty Hadju, responds vaguely that “we are so fortunate to have Dr. Tam as our Chief Public Health Officer, who is an expert adviser to this very committee. We have been following the World Health Organization recommendations since we noticed the cluster in late December. We will be closely reviewing the recommendations" (Staples, 2020a).
MP Marcus Powlowski later asked the Executive Vice-President of the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), Paul MacKinnon, why only passengers from the Wuhan or Hubei regions were subject to the current protocols set in place, even though hundreds of cases from surrounding regions have been confirmed?
MP Don Davies joins this point by adding on whether or not border security guards have been provided with the list of 24 countries where COVID-19 has been confirmed thus far?
MacKinnon's only response was that "At the border we do not have such a list” (Staples, 2020a).