Ottawa and provinces agree to guidelines that must be met before COVID-19 restrictions are lifted. Here is what we have to do

OTTAWA-The federal government has struck a deal with the premiers on minimum "guidelines" for what needs to happen before health restrictions to slow the spread of the coronavirus are lifted, Prime Minister Trudeau announced Tuesday.

The guidelines show a list of considerations that all provinces and territories have agreed to undertake before easing restrictions that have shuttered non-essential businesses and enforced social distancing across the country, according to the document published by the Council of the Federation.

These include the need to bring the spread of COVID-19 "under control"; increase capacity to "test, trace and isolate all cases"; expand the ability of health-care systems to deal with future outbreaks; and support vulnerable people like seniors who are at greater risk of being killed by the virus.

The guidelines also stress that "strong measures" to contain the virus will be needed until an effective treatment or vaccine is available, and that the provinces and Ottawa share the common goal of minimizing the risk of a second wave of infections that would trigger the return of strict health restrictions.

Speaking outside Rideau Cottage on Tuesday, Trudeau said the guidelines will serve as the foundation to ensure the relaxation of restrictions is done in the safest way. Trudeau said this will mean increased needs for personal protective equipment and safety measures at work. And vulnerable groups like seniors and long-term-care patients will need to be under protective measures for longer, he said.

But lifting restrictions can't happen until Canada increases its capacity to test for the virus and track down people who might have come into contact with an infected person, he said.

Last week, Trudeau said Canada would need to be able to test at least 60,000 people per day - and possibly much more - before restrictions are lifted. On Monday, health authorities reported 26,000 tests were conducted, which Trudeau said was a new high.

"To reopen the economy, there must be enough capacity to test and trace COVID-19 to control any new spread," he told reporters outside Rideau Cottage on Tuesday.

Trudeau also said the way restrictions are lifted will be different across the country, depending on how the pandemic is playing out from region to region.

In recent days, several provinces have outlined how they will start relaxing health restrictions. In Quebec, Premier Franiois Legault has said schools will resume in mid-May, while Ontario Premier Doug Ford refused to affix specific dates to the province's plan. He said Ontario would need to report "a consistent two- to four-week" drop in new infections before lifting restrictions and predicted that bans on large gatherings like concerts and sporting events will likely remain through the summer.

In Ottawa, Trudeau said the guideline agreement will "underlie" the province's plans, which "will depend very much on the situation on the ground" in different regions.

But experts say one of the major factors will be the capacity of health authorities to aggressively and rapidly test people for the virus. Dr. Isaac Bogoch, an infectious diseases specialist at the University of Toronto, said it is difficult to pinpoint an exact target for tests-per-day before restrictions can be safely lifted. That will depend on the rates of infection in different provinces, he said.

The more important metric will be the speed with which health authorities can test for the virus, how quickly they can obtain the results, and the thoroughness with which they can deploy personnel to contact people who may have come into contact with an infected person, Bogoch said.

"I don't know what the magic number is," he said.

"That number should be reflective of what is needed" (and the) immediate ability to test people and to confirm or refute a diagnosis of COVID-19 with the shortest possible turnaround time."

Trudeau acknowledged the need "to do much more" testing. He said the government is pushing to increase capacity through purchasing necessary swabs and ramping up Canadian production of needed materials like chemical reagents.

"We all need to improve on (testing) if we're on that if we're going to get to a place where we can open up carefully," he said.

Alex Ballingall is an Ottawa-based reporter covering national politics for the Star. Follow him on Twitter: @aballinga