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August 12, 2020

What is the current situation in Canada?

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  4. What is the current situation in Canada?

As of July 20, 2020 (07:00 p.m.), according to Public Health Canada there are 111,124 confirmed cases, [XX] probable cases, 97,474 recovered and 8,858 deaths of COVID-19 in Canada (https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/2019-novel-coronavirus-infection.html).

The Public Health Agency of Canada is working with provinces, territories and international partners, including the World Health Organization, to actively monitor the situation. Global efforts are focused on the containment of the pandemic and the prevention of further spread but have not officially declared a state of emergency regarding COVID-19. The risk to Canadians is now considered high.

This does not mean that all Canadians will get the disease. It means that there is already a significant impact on our health care system. If we do not flatten the epidemic curve now, the increase of COVID-19 cases could impact health care resources available to Canadians.

Although the government has taken certain broad and extraordinary measures already (which will be discussed later in context), on March 17, 2020, the federal government stated that they are reviewing The Emergencies Act (Canada) to see if a state of emergency should be declared so that they can take even more special temporary measures to ensure safety and security during national emergencies and to amend other Acts in consequence thereof. However, Canada is making unprecedented use of the federal Quarantine Act in a bid to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. The legislation gives the federal health minister sweeping powers to stop the spread of communicable diseases either in or out of Canada. Those measures include everything from routine screenings conducted by quarantine officers at airports to the sort of mandatory isolation orders issued on March 25, 2020. The order states that effective March 26, 2020, 12:00 p.m., all travellers returning to Canada are now legally required to go into self-isolation for 14 days rather than simply urged to do so.

The legislation contains a wide range of penalties for those flouting the law. Someone violating direct instructions and potentially placing the public at risk of a communicable disease can face a fine of up to $1 million and as many as three years in prison. Travellers must not use public or private transit to get home but only federal allocated transportation.

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Article by firstreference

Note: This page provided by First Reference is for employers needing more information on the impact, rules and best practices for addressing the global novel coronavirus pandemic also known as COVID-19. (Last updated July 20, 2020, at 11:55 p.m.). The first batch of questions discusses the broad issues related to COVID-19 and government responses. The second batch of questions are frequently asked questions by employers needing more information on the impact COVID-19 has on the application of their workplace practices and policies for addressing the global coronavirus pandemic.

The circumstances and potential consequences for employers in connection with COVID-19 continue to evolve each day. We recognize that change resulting from COVID-19 is happening in real-time. We will keep you up-to-date with measures put in place by Canadian governments to help with these issues as they are implemented as soon as we can and details are available, by updating this page. Also, when making hard decisions to protect your employees, customers and your business, we strongly recommend seeking the advice of a lawyer to avoid any liability.

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