Canada cautions residents against international travel amid Omicron threat

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Thu, 2021-12-16 04:48 — mike kraft

Canada advises against international travel amid Omicron threat Canada's government implored residents on Wednesday not to leave the country as provinces ramp up vaccinations to combat the fast-spreading Omicron coronavirus variant, even as efforts to head off a COVID-19 wave are complicated by public fatigue over the pandemic. Anna Mehler Paperny,Steve Scherer Reuters

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COVID-19 case numbers are increasing as Canadian hospitals struggle to clear backlogs from months of postponed procedures. Many exhausted staff members appear ill-equipped for another surge in infections.

"I say very clearly: Now is not the time to travel," Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos told a news conference, adding it is clear there is community transmission of Omicron in Canada.

Duclos said the government is sending millions more COVID-19 vaccine doses and rapid tests to the 10 provinces. ...

"I say very clearly: Now is not the time to travel," Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos told a news conference, adding it is clear there is community transmission of Omicron in Canada.

Duclos said the government is sending millions more COVID-19 vaccine doses and rapid tests to the 10 provinces.

Ontario is broadening the eligibility for a third shot of the vaccine to everyone over the age of 18, while shortening the required gap between the second and third doses to three months.

"As we combat the spread of the highly contagious Omicron variant, nothing matters more than getting these booster doses into people's arms," Ontario Premier Doug Ford said on Wednesday....

Canada already has travel bans on 10 African countries because of concerns about the new variant. Canada advised people in March 2020 not to travel abroad unless necessary. But it withdrew the notice this past October - before the first Omicron cases were reported - citing the success of vaccination campaigns.

Peter Juni, director of Ontario's COVID-19 science advisory table, urged people to take precautions, get vaccinated and not take Omicron lightly.

"What really worries me is that people are asleep at the steering wheel, internationally," he said. "They have wishful thinking it will be mild. ... This is not a realistic attitude." ...

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