What you need to know about COVID-19 in Alberta on Monday, June 29
Alberta unveils plan to kickstart battered economy
The latest:
- Alberta will spend billions on infrastructure projects, cut its corporate tax rate, establish a new investment agency and introduce a series of targeted incentives for industry as part of a plan to restart its battered economy.
- The province reported 71 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday, for a total of 559 active cases.
- Calgary-based WestJet, along with Air Canada, will drop their physical distancing policies starting Canada Day, raising health concerns as the pandemic continues to decimate the air travel industry.
- Alberta will soon offer testing for COVID-19 at community pharmacies, says Health Minister Tyler Shandro.
- Only two of Calgary's eight outdoor pools will open this summer, officials say.
What you need to know today in Alberta:
The Alberta government's blueprint to reboot the economy was announced today in Calgary. Alberta will increase spending on infrastructure projects, cut its corporate tax rate and establish a new investment agency as part of a plan to restart its battered economy.
As of Sunday, there were 45 COVID cases at a Calgary condo tower, the 25-storey Verve in the East Village. One resident said a lack of clarity has put an unfair stigma on the building and its occupants. There were 34 active and 11 recovered cases associated with the building.
Alberta reported 71 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, the largest spike in cases since May 16, though only slightly higher than Saturday's update, which saw 69 new cases.
In all, 154 people have died of COVID-19 in Alberta.
As of Monday, there are 559 active cases and 7,354 recovered in the province. The province has completed 442,253 tests for COVID-19.
Here's how active cases break down within provincial zones:
- Edmonton zone: 257.
- Calgary zone: 239.
- North zone: 32.
- South zone: 26.
- Central zone: 4.
- Unknown: 1.
What you need to know today in Canada:
Despite a few recent outbreaks across the country, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said today new federal figures show efforts to fight the novel coronavirus in Canada are working.
British Columbia is seeing a sustained rise in the virus for the first time in months, with hospitalizations at their highest point since June 7 and the five-day rolling average of new cases the highest since May 17.
Online and social media campaigns are stoking doubts about the safety — and even questioning the necessity — of a coronavirus vaccine, to the dismay of scientists.
For the past few months, WestJet has barred the sale of adjacent seats throughout entire planes and Air Canada has followed suit in economy class. Those practices are set to end July 1.
In April, Transport Canada said physical distancing was one of the "key points" to prevent the spread of COVID-19. WestJet and Air Canada said they were reverting to health guidance from the United Nation's aviation agency and the International International Air Transport Association (IATA) trade group.
WestJet has laid off 3,333 workers and is planning to consolidate and contract out much of its operations as the pandemic continues to sink the majority of demand for air travel.
As of 12:57 p.m. ET on Monday, Canada had 103,818 confirmed and presumptive coronavirus cases. Provinces and territories listed 67,096 of the cases as recovered or resolved. A CBC News tally of deaths based on provincial reports, regional health information and CBC's reporting stood at 8,610.
Self-assessment and supports:
Alberta Health Services has an online self-assessment tool that you can use to determine if you have symptoms of COVID-19, but testing is open to anyone, even without symptoms.
The province says Albertans who have returned to Canada from other countries must self-isolate. Unless your situation is critical and requires a call to 911, Albertans are advised to call Health Link at 811 before visiting a physician, hospital or other health-care facility.
If you have symptoms, even mild, you are to self-isolate for 10 days from the onset of symptoms.
You can find Alberta Health Services' latest coronavirus updates here.
The province also operates a confidential mental health support line at 1-877-303-2642 and addiction help line at 1-866-332-2322, available from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., seven days a week.
Online resources are available for advice on handling stressful situations and ways to talk with children.
There is a 24-hour family violence information line at 310-1818 to get anonymous help in more than 170 languages, and Alberta's One Line for Sexual Violence is available at 1-866-403-8000, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.