Today’s coronavirus news: Ontario ICU occupancy will likely rise with growing COVID case counts, science table says; Health Canada authorizes the use of the Moderna as a booster
The latest coronavirus news from Canada and around the world Friday. This file will be updated throughout the day. Web links to longer stories if available.
12 p.m. Toronto Public Health is moving to allow children who turn 12 years a grace period before having to show proof of vaccination in order to play indoor organized sports.
The proof of vaccination grace period expires 12 weeks from the child's date of birth. Toronto's top doctor made the announcement Friday, saying "this amendment provides a reasonable opportunity for children who turn 12 years old to receive the important protection that comes with two doses of COVID-19 vaccine. We want to ensure that children are able to continue with their activities, while completing their vaccination series."
Currently, anyone 12 and older participating in indoor organized sports, including players, coaches, and officials, must show proof of vaccination. The amendment is being made alongside York and Peel Region public health units.
11:47 a.m. Health officials in Prince Edward Island are reporting three new cases of COVID-19 Friday.
A government news release says the cases involve a child younger than 10, a person in their 50s and someone in their 70s.
The release says the source of the infection involving the person in their 70s is under investigation, while the other two cases have been linked to travel or to previously identified infections.
Public health says everyone involved is self-isolating and contact tracing is complete.
Friday's new cases bring the number of active reported cases on the Island to seven.
11:35 p.m. Ontario's pandemic advisors say intensive care occupancy is likely to increase to approximately 200 patients by the new year as COVID-19 cases rise.
The COVID-19 Science Advisory Table's latest projections say hospitalizations are currently stable, but intensive care occupancy is likely to increase.
The group of science experts says COVID-19 cases are rising in most of the province's public health units and test positivity is also increasing.
They say future case predictions are uncertain because a surge in daily reported infections is very recent.
They recommend policies supporting proper masking and full vaccination and say the recent pause on the province's reopening plan was the right decision.
The group also notes that COVID-19 risk remains higher for lower-income people, minority groups and essential workers.
11:30 a.m. Pacific Rim leaders agreed to do all they can to improve access to coronavirus vaccines and reduce carbon emissions, but failed to reach agreement on whether the U.S. should host talks in two years' time.
U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping were among those taking part in the online meeting of 21 leaders at the end of the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum on Saturday, which was being hosted virtually by New Zealand.
The focus was on areas in which the unlikely mix of leaders could find common ground. But the failure of the group to endorse a U.S. bid to host APEC in 2023 pointed to some of the divisions that lie just beneath the surface.
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said she expected APEC would reach agreement around the U.S. bid by the end of the year, and said that the atmosphere in the room was pragmatic, despite the geopolitical tensions.
11:10 a.m. Health Canada has authorized the use of the Moderna Spikevax COVID-19 vaccine as a booster shot.
A COVID-19 booster shot is an extra dose of the vaccine given after completion of the primary vaccine series. The booster shot is designed to help people maintain their protection against COVID-19 over time.
Health Canada received Moderna's submission to approve a booster on October 6, 2021. After a thorough, independent review of the evidence, Health Canada has determined that the Spikevax COVID-19 vaccine booster shot meets the Department's stringent safety, efficacy and quality requirements.
The booster is authorized for adults 18 years of age and older, to be used at least six months after an individual has completed their primary vaccine series. The Spikevax COVID-19 booster is a half dose of the regular vaccine (50 mcg).
Evidence continues to show that being fully vaccinated provides strong protection against serious illness, hospitalization and death from COVID-19, including against the Delta variants.
11 a.m. The Ontario government says 98 per cent of staff in the province's long-term-care homes have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, and 95 per cent have two.
The province's latest data come just days before long-term-care staff have to show proof of a first shot in order to continue working.
Long-Term Care Minister Rod Phillips had originally set Monday as a deadline for staff to have received both doses, but now says they must have received at least one dose by Nov. 15 and both doses by Dec. 13.
The government has said those who fail to do so will not be allowed to enter long-term-care facilities to work.
10:45 a.m. Austria is implementing a lockdown for unvaccinated people in two hard-hit regions next week and looks poised to move forward with similar measures nationwide, Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg said Friday.
Starting Monday, unvaccinated people in the regions of Upper Austria and Salzburg will only be allowed to leave home for specific necessary reasons, such as buying groceries or going to the doctor.
Schallenberg said he and regional leaders will meet again on Sunday and plan to give approval for implementing those measures across the country.
10:27 a.m. A community centre in southern Nova Scotia is facing a potential fine of just over $11,600 for allegedly failing to properly inform users of its facility about COVID-19 health restrictions.
The RCMP say in a news release officers laid the charges after a Halloween craft fair was held at the Woods Harbour Community Centre on Oct. 24.
Police say they checked on the Halloween fair after hearing the centre was routinely hosting events without enforcing proof of vaccination or masking requirements.
However, Wayne Malone, the volunteer president of the community centre, says the organization holding the craft fair was informed of the public health rules, and he intends to appeal the fine before the courts.
10:15 a.m. (updated) Ontario is reporting another 598 COVID-19 cases and four more deaths, according to its latest report released Friday morning.
Ontario has administered 13,468 vaccine doses since its last daily update, with 22,681,696 vaccines given in total as of 8 p.m. the previous night.
According to the Star's vaccine tracker, 11,555,033 people in Ontario have received at least one shot. That works out to approximately 88.6 per cent of the eligible population 12 years and older, and the equivalent of 77.7 per cent of the total population, including those not yet eligible for the vaccine.
Read the full story from the Star's Urbi Khan
10:10 a.m. The movies are clawing their way back in theaters, but, so far, not everyone is showing up like they used to.
While certain segments of moviegoers are closer to pre-pandemic levels, older moviegoers and family audiences have been slower to return. That's shrunk already narrow opportunities for non-franchise films to find audiences. Well before the pandemic, superheroes and spectacles were already a bigger and bigger slice of the box-office pie. Right now, they're closer to the whole meal.
David A. Gross, who runs the movie consultancy Franchise Entertainment, estimates that while superhero films are back to about 75 per cent of pre-pandemic levels, adult character-driven genres are down 66 per cent to 75 per cent from normal, and family films are at least than 50 per cent off. That can naturally be attributed to COVID-19 concerns. Older ticket buyers are more likely to be cautious about the virus. Vaccines are only just rolling out for those under 12.
9:50 a.m. Since the earliest days of the pandemic, there has been one collective goal for bringing it to an end: achieving herd immunity. That's when so many people are immune to a virus that it runs out of potential hosts to infect, causing an outbreak to sputter out.
Many Americans embraced the novel farmyard phrase, and with it, the projection that once 70 per cent to 80 per cent or 85 per cent of the population was vaccinated against COVID-19, the virus would go away and the pandemic would be over.
Now the herd is restless. And experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have set aside herd immunity as a national goal.
The prospects for meeting a clear herd-immunity target are "very complicated," said Dr. Jefferson Jones, a medical officer on the CDC's COVID-19 Epidemiology Task Force.
"Thinking that we'll be able to achieve some kind of threshold where there'll be no more transmission of infections may not be possible," Jones acknowledged last week to members of a panel that advises the CDC on vaccines.
9:30 a.m. She's a world figure skating champion with two Stanley Cup rings, a trailblazer in opening doors for women in positions of hockey power.
But when COVID-19 struck and her first granddaughter was born, Barb Underhill's priorities changed immediately. The baby, Maisy, was taken immediately to the Hospital for Sick Children and put on life support.
Right away, our life just stopped," says Underhill. She was just the centre of my thoughts and our life every single day."
Maisy is doing well now - She's our miracle baby" - and two more grandkids arrived during the pandemic.
Read the full story from the Star's Kevin McGran
9 a.m. The volunteer-driven PinkCars group in Markham has helped more than 10,000 seniors in York Region get their COVID-19 vaccine since March, but it isn't quite ready to drive off into the sunset just yet.
Born out of an urgent need to help as many seniors book and get their vaccine in the early days of the region's rollout, the group founded by Shanta Sundarason was up and running within 48 hours with a hotline, two volunteer drivers and a website created with the help of City Coun. Andrew Keyes.
Now, with roughly 90 per cent of seniors fully vaccinated as of Nov. 5, the group continues - albeit at a lower gear - to offer help and rides to those in need of booster shots, as well as the downloading and printing off proof of vaccinations.
8:30 a.m. Heroux-Devtek Inc. saw profits climb but revenue fall last quarter as the landing-gear maker bore the impact of ongoing aerospace turbulence caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Quebec-based company says civil aviation sales continued to fall, dropping more than 17 per cent in the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared to the same period a year earlier.
However, defence sales climbed by about nine per cent to $94 million.
Total revenue decreased to $131.3 million in the company's second quarter compared to $137.1 million the year before, a drop the company attributes to the negative impact of foreign exchange fluctuations.
8:05 a.m. Joseph Brant Hospital fired 13 staff and put 38 more on unpaid leave as it became the first area hospital to enforce mandatory COVID-19 vaccination.
Fewer than three per cent of staff remained unvaccinated after the mandate took effect Nov. 1, potentially providing a glimpse of what is to come in Hamilton, Haldimand, Norfolk and Niagara.
The 51 staff disciplined are a small minority next to the 1,770 who are fully vaccinated at the Burlington hospital.
7:45 a.m. In Peel region, there is a school bus driver shortage due to the COVID-19 vaccine mandate causing commute delays for Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board's students.
On Nov. 9, a report was put forward for the Administration and Finance Committee meeting, providing updated information related to service delivery by the Student Transportation of Peel Region (STOPR) and Service de Transport Wellington-Dufferin Student Transportation (STWDSTS).
The report details student transportation services are following the capacity restrictions in the buses, as per the direction of Peel Public Health. Because of the additional runs and routes this school year due to capacity restrictions, the implementation of the vaccination disclosure mandate for drivers, and the recent lifting of some travel restrictions the report says that STOPR has faced more day-to-day challenges with having to cover unexpected driver absences."
The bus operators reported that the implementation of the vaccination mandate resulted in a loss of 40 drivers' across the region.
7:15 a.m. Everyone over the age of 18 in Norway will be offered a booster shot of coronavirus vaccine, the country's prime minister said Friday, adding that unvaccinated health care personnel should be tested twice a week and must wear face masks.
Vaccination is the most important protection we have against coronavirus. The infection will be among us for several years to come, and there is a lot we can do together to prevent the virus from spreading," Jonas Gahr Stoere said.
The move comes amid a surge in coronavirus infections across Europe in recent weeks. Across Western Europe, a region with relatively high vaccination rates and good health care systems but where lockdown measures are largely a thing of the past, infections are again going up.
6:30 a.m.: During the spring rush for vaccines, each day brought a new crowd of people to Humber River Hospital's vaccine clinic, all of them eager to get protection from COVID-19.
The clinic at Downsview Arena remained busy through the summer as waves of residents from Toronto's northwest corner became eligible for a shot.
And in September, another crush of people seeking first doses queued up at the hospital's new clinic in a Weston shopping plaza after vaccine passports rolled out across the province.
Now, two months later, that steady stream of people arriving for their first shots has slowed to a trickle.
Read the full story from the Star's Megan Ogilvie here.
6:30 a.m.: Pressure is ramping up for the Ontario government to introduce permanent paid sick leave as the temporary pandemic sick days program is set to end in less than two months.
Labour advocates and health professionals say the pandemic has shown that guaranteed paid sick leave is an essential, life-saving policy that should extend beyond COVID-19.
Many are pushing for 10 permanent paid sick days as the temporary program nears its close.
But the government hasn't yet indicated whether or not it will extend its temporary paid sick leave program or create a new, permanent one.
Read the full story from the Star's Rosa Saba.
6:27 a.m.: The Czech government is requiring children to get tested for COVID-19 as part of efforts to curtail a recent steep rise in cases.
All elementary and high schools are required to test the country's 1.4 million students in two waves on Nov. 22 and Nov. 29, Education Minister Robert Plaga said.
Medical experts recommended the mass testing. Firefighters will distribute rapid test kits across the country, officials said.
Health Minister Adam Vojtech said the outgoing Czech government and members of the opposition that won an October parliamentary election and is forming a new government discussed additional coronavirus measures on Friday.
It's essential for all of us to be united," Vojtech said.
He declined to detail the new measures, which the government is set to approve early next week. Vojtech said both teams agreed on the importance of vaccination as the rate in the Czech Republic is below the European Union average.
I'm glad that the government is listening to us," Petr Smejkal, chief epidemiologist at Prague's Institute for Clinical and Experimental Medicine, told Czech public television.
6:27 a.m.: Denmark on Friday reintroduced its digital pass as it declared COVID-19 once again a socially critical disease" amid an increase in cases.
The pass must be used for a month to enter nightclubs, cafes, party buses and to be seated indoor in restaurants. It was originally introduced on July 1 but was removed on Sept. 10, when the outbreak was apparently under control because of a high rate of vaccination.
People above the age of 15, must flash the pass when attending outdoor events where the number of people exceeds 2,000.
Denmark, like many other countries, has seen an uptick in cases, with health authorities saying the number of infections and hospitalizations has risen faster than expected.
On Tuesday, the Danish parliament's all-party Epidemic Committee unanimously approved a decision to once again call the outbreak a socially critical disease" and reintroduce the pass.
The Danish pass app shows a QR code with a green banner if the holder is fully vaccinated or received a first dose at least two weeks ago, has recently recovered from COVID-19 or has had a negative test in the past 72 hours. A paper version is also available.
6:26 a.m.: Germany's disease control centre is calling for people to cancel or avoid large events and to reduce their contacts as the country's coronavirus infection rate hits the latest in a string of new highs.
The centre, the Robert Koch Institute, said Friday that Germany's infection rate climbed to 263.7 new cases per 100,000 residents over seven days, up from 249.1 the previous day.
Germany reported 48,640 new cases Friday, a day after the daily total topped 50,000 for the first time. Another 191 COVID-19 deaths brought Germany's total in the pandemic so far to 97,389.
While the infection rate isn't yet as high as in some other European countries, its relentless rise in Germany has set off alarm bells. Outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel plans to meet with the country's 16 state governors to co-ordinate nationwide measures next week, and Parliament is mulling legislation that would provide a new legal framework for restrictions over the winter.
We must now do everything necessary to break this momentum," Health Minister Jens Spahn told reporters. Otherwise it will be a bitter December for the whole country."
In its weekly report released late Thursday, the Robert Koch Institute said it urgently advises cancelling larger events if possible, but also reducing all other unnecessary contacts." If such events can't be avoided, it added, people should take a test before attending, regardless of whether they are vaccinated.
6:26 a.m.: Thailand on Friday said it would delay the reopening of nightlife entertainment venues to Jan. 15 despite pleas from the industry to make it sooner.
A spokesman for the government's COVID-19 administration cited concerns about ventilation and inefficient prevention measures in pubs, bars and karaoke joints.
The experts show their concern about reopening these places because of the low ventilation and the crowd, which would be difficult to control," said Taweesin Visanuyotin, a spokesman for the Center for COVID-19 Situation Administration. We will allow the businesses to reopen, but we might start testing in some areas first."
Starting in November, Thailand began reopening to fully vaccinated visitors without quarantine, easing the lockdown that has caused massive job losses and hardship. Tourism accounted for some 20% of the economy before the pandemic.
The Thailand Nightlife and Entertainment Business Association had hoped that nightlife businesses, shut since April, would reopen next month.
6:26 a.m.: Officials in Beijing are asking for events and activities to be moved online as the city is experiencing more infections in the current cluster than at any time in the past 17 months.
6:25 a.m.: The Japanese government's preparations for the next virus surge include adding thousands more hospital beds to avoid a situation like last summer when many COVID-19 patients were forced to stay home, even while dependent on oxygen deliveries.
Even though Japan has a reasonable health insurance system and the world's largest number of beds per capita, COVID-19 patients were admitted to only a fraction of the beds, mostly at public, university and major private hospitals. The government has provided subsidies to lure more hospitals to treat such patients, but progress is slow, triggering calls for tougher measures in an emergency.
Small private hospitals have been reluctant to accept COVID-19 patients, citing insufficient expertise to handle infectious diseases, lack of staff or the cost. Some prefectures have set up systems where those hospitals would accept patients who are no longer infectious and rehabilitating from serious illness after treatment at bigger hospitals.
Virus measures are key to Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's weeks-old government maintaining its grip on power after public dissatisfaction with his predecessor's response - criticized as too little and too slow - precipitated the change in government.
6:23 a.m.: A woman whose surgery in Alberta for cancer in her face was delayed because hospitals were overburdened with COVID-19 says the consequences for her have been drastic.
Sharon Durham of Wynyard, Sask., says she would not have lost her entire nose if the surgery had been done sooner. She will have to wear a prosthetic one for the rest of her life.
I could have used part of my old nose and just had some plastic surgery done," Durham, 54, told The Canadian Press.
I could have probably moved on."
In late September, Alberta cancelled non-essential surgeries because of the crippling fourth wave of COVID-19. Durham was one of 15,000 people whose operation was delayed.
Read the full story from the Canadian Press.
6:22 a.m.: Nova Scotia will help pay for a COVID-19 vaccine for mink, but the British Columbia government says more research is needed to determine if immunization is an option for thousands of animals that will soon be banned from the province.
Nova Scotia's Agriculture Department said the vaccination program, to be launched soon at five farms until the end of December, is based on advice from veterinarian and medical experts as part of a trial offering 54,000 doses to mink farms in that province.
The province will split the cost with the federal government as part of previously announced funding for the agricultural sector, the department said in an emailed statement.
The industry will provide in-kind work for administering the vaccine to the mink," it said.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency said it granted permission to import an experimental vaccine for mink from the United States following discussions with the Public Health Agency of Canada, the provinces and the industry.
Vaccination began in August 2021 and is restricted for emergency use under licensed veterinarian supervision," it said in a statement.
News of the mink vaccination program comes after the Agriculture Ministry in British Columbia announced live mink would not be permitted on farms by April 2023 and its industry would be phased out two years later.
It said public health concerns are behind the plan to shut down nine farms in the Fraser Valley that currently have about 318,000 mink.
6:20 a.m.: A group of scientists advising the Ontario government on COVID-19 is to release its latest pandemic projections today.
The COVID-19 Science Table is expected to publish its modelling at 11 a.m.
It comes amid a resurgence of COVID-19 cases that prompted the province to put further reopening plans on hold.
Settings where proof of vaccination is still required for entry - including nightclubs, strip clubs and bathhouses - will not see their capacity limits lifted on Monday as expected, and will instead have to wait until mid-December.
Dr. Kieran Moore, chief medical officer of health, said he made the decision because of rising case counts and test positivity rates.
Yesterday, the seven-day average of new COVID-19 cases sat at 532, compared to 383 a week earlier.