Prairie provinces becoming hardest hit by COVID-19 in Canada

Dec 3, 2020 | 4:11 PM

EDMONTON – The three Prairie provinces have become the epicentre of COVID-19’s second wave in Canada — surpassing Ontario and Quebec, the two most populous provinces that were initially the hardest hit.

Dr. Kelly MacDonald is a professor of infectious disease at the University of Manitoba.

She says conservative governments in these provinces are pro-business and have had agendas to cut health-care costs.

Manitoba was the first in the Prairies to introduce stricter health measures, but they were brought in when rates were in the exponential phase.

MacDonald says that means, at best, the numbers would level off but not decrease for some time.

The infection rate per capita is currently highest in Alberta, followed by Manitoba then Saskatchewan.

Alberta has been reporting well over one-thousand new cases a day.

Last week, Alberta announced a new set of restrictions after mounting pressure from public health experts.

But some say the restrictions don’t go far enough.

Dr. James Talbot, a professor of public health at the University of Alberta, says there is a reluctance by the government to impose a full lockdown.

He suggests it’s not too late to turn the numbers around but restrictions need to stay in place until Canada distributes a COVID-19 vaccine.

(The Canadian Press)

by Canadian Press