Today’s coronavirus news: Ontario reporting 466 new cases; Alberta Premier Jason Kenney holding presser as cases surge
The latest coronavirus news from Canada and around the world Tuesday. This file will be updated throughout the day. Web links to longer stories if available.
2:30 p.m. Quebec will offer a third dose of COVID-19 vaccine to residents of long-term care facilities and seniors residences amid a rise in outbreaks in those facilities.
Health Minister Christian Dube says the third dose will be offered to residents at the end of October and will be given at the same time as seasonal vaccinations.
He says Quebec, which already offers a third dose of vaccine to people who are severely immunocompromised, is not yet planning to make a third dose of vaccine available to other older people.
Earlier in the day, Quebec reported 469 new cases of COVID-19 and six deaths linked to the novel coronavirus.
2:20 p.m. Another Ontario doctor has been called on the carpet for questionable activities related to COVID-19 misinformation.
One week after a Richmond Hill doctor drew large crowds of people seeking vaccine exemptions, a Timiskiming-area physician is facing restrictions by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO).
In a release issued Tuesday, the college said allegations that Dr. Patrick Phillips is incompetent and engaged in disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional conduct," have been referred to the Ontario Physicians and Surgeons Discipline Tribunal.
Read the full story here from Kim Zarzour.
2 p.m. More than 400,000 Americans got Pfizer booster shots last weekend through local pharmacies in the opening days of the U.S effort to provide more protection for vulnerable populations.
White House COVID-19 co-ordinator Jeff Zients says an additional 1 million people have scheduled booster shots for the coming weeks. He adds: We're off to a very strong start with the booster campaign."
As many as 25 million people qualify for the third dose of the Pfizer shot, which was authorized last week for those 65 or older, those with pre-existing conditions or facing an elevated risk at their workplace.
U.S. officials say their primary focus is ensuring the roughly 25 per cent of eligible Americans who have yet to get their first shot do so.
1:50 p.m. Prince Edward Island is increasing COVID-19 testing at its borders beginning Thursday because of the growing presence of the Delta variant in Atlantic Canada.
Chief public health officer Dr. Heather Morrison said Tuesday that everyone entering the province, including Island residents returning home, will be tested regardless of their vaccination status.
Morrison is also recommending that travellers who are 12 and older be tested again between the fourth and eighth day after they enter the province.
She says school-aged children under 12 who return to P.E.I. from travelling will be required to test negative for COVID-19 before they can go back to school.
Morrison is reporting two new cases of COVID-19 today, bringing the number of active cases in the province to nine.
One case involves a close household contact of a previously reported infection tied to an outbreak at Charlottetown's West Royalty Elementary School, and the other case involves a person in their 50s who recently travelled outside Atlantic Canada.
1:45 p.m. Lawyers for Maj.-Gen. Dany Fortin and the government argued Tuesday over whether the senior officer's decision to challenge his abrupt removal as head of Canada's COVID-19 vaccine rollout should be dealt with by the military or in court.
The battle erupted on the first day of a two-day hearing in which Fortin's legal team is asking a Federal Court judge to reinstate their client to his former job at the Public Health Agency of Canada, or a similar position.
In her opening arguments, Justice Department lawyer Elizabeth Richards asked Justice Ann Marie McDonald to toss Fortin's case, saying if he was unhappy with his removal, he should have filed a grievance with the military.
The military grievance process is established exactly for that reason: to deal with any manner of complaints, any issue whatsoever, about the administration of the Canadian Armed Forces," Richards told the court.
The applicant hasn't even tried, hasn't even filed a grievance," she later added.
1:30 p.m. Alberta Premier Jason Kenney is set to speak to reporters later Tuesday as COVID-19 continues to surge in the province, pushing intensive care wards to a breaking point.
Kenney is to hold an afternoon news conference with Justice Minister Kaycee Madu, Health Minister Jason Copping and Dr. Deena Hinshaw, the province's chief medical officer of health.
The announcement comes almost two weeks after Kenney announced new measures, including a type of vaccine passport, to try to slow down nation-leading cases of COVID-19 and give more people an incentive to get their shots.
The case numbers, however, have continued to average well over a thousand a day, with about 1,700 new cases reported each day over the weekend.
The Alberta Medical Association and infectious disease specialists say the only solution is an immediate lockdown, shutting down schools, businesses and attendance at sports events, and fully compensating those affected.
Kenney has rejected those calls, saying it would not be fair to the 83 per cent of eligible Albertans who have stepped up to get at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine.
1:15 p.m. Chelsea midfielder N'Golo Kante has tested positive for the coronavirus and is isolating for 10 days.
The France World Cup winner will miss Chelsea's Champions League match at Juventus on Wednesday and the English Premier League match against Southampton on Saturday.
1 p.m. As vaccines have steadily rolled out across the country, Canadians are thinking more and more about returning to the office. Even with a surge in cases in Toronto and the GTA due to Ontario's Delta variant, discussions continue about return-to-work plans.
But it's not only the isolation or the idea of a return-to-office that has people filled with so much anxiety, some people are nervous about seeing people in person again due to changes in body size. And it has become an internal battle for those navigating an already stressful situation.
For many Canadians, working from home has meant a less active lifestyle. And for those who have kept active somehow, there has been mounting pressure to look and feel good just as they did prior to their pre-pandemic selves, which frankly is a lot to ask of anyone.
12:40 p.m. South Carolina has the second highest rate of COVID-19 in children as of last Thursday, according to an updated analysis from the American Academy of Pediatrics.
For every 100,000 children in South Carolina, about 14,600 have contracted the coronavirus since the beginning of the pandemic - almost double the national rate of 7,600 COVID-19 positive children per every 100,000.
The only state with a higher rate of cases in children was Tennessee, with 15,225 cases per 100,000 children.
As of last Thursday, 596 children in South Carolina had been hospitalized after contracting the virus since the beginning of the pandemic, according to the report.
The American Academy of Pediatrics started compiling data on children with COVID-19 at the beginning of the month. The reports collect case counts from health departments in 49 states, New York City, Washington, Puerto Rico and Guam.
In each report published since, South Carolina has sat among the top three states of minors with COVID-19.
Cases of COVID-19 among children have increased nationally in recent weeks, reaching high levels in late August and early September, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. In the last week alone, there were almost 207,000 reports of children contracting the virus.
12:05 p.m. School trustees in Vancouver have voted unanimously in favour of requiring masks to be worn by students in kindergarten to Grade 3.
Mask mandates set by British Columbia's provincial health officer exempt youngsters in primary grades from wearing masks in class, although intermediate and secondary students, staff and visitors must be masked in classrooms and indoor areas.
The Vancouver School Board becomes the first in the province to mandate masks for primary students.
The approved motion leaves room for parental input, if concerns are submitted in writing to the principal of their child's school.
11:50 a.m. Ontario is reporting another 466 COVID-19 cases and 11 more deaths. Of the 11, two of the deaths occurred more than one month ago and are being added to the cumulative count due to a data cleanup, according to the province's latest report released Tuesday morning.
Ontario has administered 31,855 vaccine doses since its last daily update, with 21,704,159 vaccines given in total as of 8 p.m. the previous night.
According to the Star's vaccine tracker, 11,210,437 people in Ontario have received at least one shot. That works out to approximately 86.0 per cent of the eligible population 12 years and older, and the equivalent of 75.4 per cent of the total population, including those not yet eligible for the vaccine.
Read the full story from the Star's Urbi Khan
11:32 a.m. Quebec is reporting 469 new cases of COVID-19 Tuesday and six deaths linked to the coronavirus.
The number of new cases is the lowest reported in a single day in the province since August.
The Health Department says the number of hospitalizations rose by 22, to 321, and 94 people are in intensive care, a decline of one from the day before.
The province's public health institute says 89.3 per cent of Quebec residents 12 and over have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 85.2 per cent are considered adequately vaccinated.
11:05 a.m. Social events including birthday parties and a wedding have been linked to a COVID-19 outbreak of the Delta variant at a Peel indoor sporting event in August.
Participation in sports and recreation activities are important for a child's health and well-being," said Peel Public Health in a Sept. 24 epidemiology report.
Public health dove into the data from the event.
The health authority would not disclosure which sporting event the outbreak was at.
There was only one outbreak at a sporting event that was publicly disclosed in August in Peel - at the Toronto Exhibition Series hockey tournament on Aug. 27 to 29.
10:20 a.m. Ontario is reporting 466 new cases of COVID-19; 347 cases are in individuals who are not fully vaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status and 119 are in fully vaccinated individuals, according to tweets from Health Minister Christine Elliott.
In Ontario, 21,704,159 vaccine doses have been administered. Nearly 86 per cent of Ontarians 12+ have one dose and nearly 80.5 per cent have two doses.
There are 808 schools with a reported case of COVID out of 4,844 schools in the province, or 16.68 per cent.
The province says one school has closed due to outbreak or operational considerations. It does not include regional closures in a local public health unit area.
To find out if there are COVID cases at your child's school, use the Star's tracker tool to search.
10 a.m. The initial data from the trial of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine in children 5 to under 12 years of age has been submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, according to a tweet from Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla.
10 a.m. Ontario Chief Medical Officer Dr. Kieran Moore's weekly COVID-19 update is being rescheduled and will instead take place Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. instead.
9:45 a.m. Despite reporting a second death in its COVID-19 outbreak on Monday, there are no plans to mandate vaccinations at Macassa Lodge in Hamilton.
A resident in their 80s died at the city-run, long-term-care home, after another in the same age group died last week after testing positive with the virus. A ninth staff case was also reported Monday, bringing the total outbreak case count to 20.
As of Friday, 87 per cent of Macassa staff were fully vaccinated, with 92 per cent partially inoculated, said spokesperson Jacqueline Durlov in an email.
As of now, Macassa Lodge is not implementing additional vaccination mandates above what is mandated by the province," Durlov said.
9:25 a.m. Newly constructed single-family homes in the GTA hit a new benchmark high price of $1.52 million last month - 30 per cent more than a year earlier - as supply hit near historic lows in the Toronto region.
But a flood of new condos offerings pushed sales of those units to an 11-year August record, according to the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD) that represents homebuilders.
The benchmark price for condominium units dipped to $1.07 million in August - a 10 per cent annualized increase but down from July's $1.09 million benchmark.
The 3,162 condos that sold last month - including stacked townhomes and lofts - was 129 per cent above the 10-year average. It was also 35 per cent more than August 2020 sales but BILD is warning against reading too much into last year's numbers, suggesting that market was distorted by the pandemic.
Read the full story from the Star's Tess Kalinowski
9:10 a.m. Ontario's medical regulator says it has imposed a number of restrictions on a family physician accused of spreading misinformation about COVID-19.
The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario says Dr. Patrick Phillips, who is based in northeastern Ontario, is now barred from providing medical exemptions regarding COVID-19 vaccines, masking requirements and testing.
The regulator says Phillips is also prohibited from prescribing ivermectin - an antiparasitic agent that Health Canada says should not be used for treating COVID-19 - as well as fluvoxamine and atorvastatin in connection with the virus.
The college alleges that between August 2020 and this month, Phillips engaged in disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional conduct in his communications regarding the pandemic, including on social media.
8:50 a.m. Coronavirus confirmed deaths in Russia hit another record at 852 on Tuesday.
Russia's state coronavirus task force reported the increase from the previous record of 828 on Friday.
Daily coronavirus infections in Russia have fallen from more than 20,000 in late August to about 18,000 in mid-September. However, the numbers have started creeping up again. Since last Thursday, the state coronavirus task force has been reporting more than 21,000 new cases a day. On Tuesday, 21,559 new infections were registered.
Despite the increase, there are few restrictions in place in Russia, which had one, six-week lockdown last spring. Vaccination rates have remained low, too, with only 32% of the country's 146 million population having received at least one shot of a vaccine and only 28% fully vaccinated.
Russian authorities have reported a total of about 7.4 million confirmed infections and more than 205,000 confirmed deaths. However, reports by the government's statistical service Rosstat indicates the tally of coronavirus-linked deaths retroactively reveal much higher mortality numbers.
7:30 a.m. Pharmacist Kyro Maseh, a pharmacist at Lawlor Pharmasave on Kingston Road, tweeted Monday that he had the honor" of providing Michael Kovrig with his first COVID-19 vaccine dose.
I want everyone to know this, vaccines are the way to combat this disease," Kovrig said. Kovrig spent 1,020 days in captivity in a Chinese prison before arriving back in Canada on Saturday.
Kovrig got a standing ovation from the staff.
On Twitter, Maseh said: He is a man that understands the value of freedom better than most people on this earth. He felt that he must ensure his safety and health so he can heal & enjoy his life."
7 a.m. COVID-19 vaccinations for kids could be a reality within months. The first look at results from a trial of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine on kids ages five to 11 suggested a smaller, child-sized dose of the vaccine is safe, well tolerated and showed robust neutralizing antibody responses."
In other words, it appears to work.
That's according to a statement put out by the companies this week, and while the data has not been published or vetted by other scientists, the early results have offered a glimmer of hope for families seeking protection from the virus. Results in children under five are expected later this year.
In the release, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla says the new results provide a strong foundation" in applying to regulators for approval to begin administering the shots to children. Health Canada has previously said it expects to have the necessary information to make a decision on the vaccine's approval by the end of the year.
Read the full story here from Alex Boyd.
6:18 a.m.: Right now in Ontario, if you're eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, you must be fully immunized to see the new Marvel movie in theatres. You don't, however, need to be immunized to attend public school.
Right now in Ontario many fully vaccinated adults who work from home have access to an arsenal of personal rapid COVID-19 tests. Many unvaccinated kids in school, however, do not.
In other words, there's a lot that is confusing and counterintuitive about Ontario's pandemic response. There is a lot that makes you feel like your head is going to explode.
Read the column from the Star's Emma Teitel.
6:17 a.m.: A massive drop in routine childhood immunizations could be further complicated by uncertainty over whether COVID vaccines can overlap with other jabs, and which ones should be prioritized.
Regular shots for kids - including those that protect against measles, mumps, rubella, hepatitis B, meningococcal disease and human papillomavirus - have been derailed by school closures and public health measures, a new report by researchers at the University of Toronto and McMaster University suggests.
While parents scramble to catch up, flu shot clinics start in October, and COVID jabs could be rolled out in four to six weeks. But guidance from health agencies on whether routine and COVID vaccines need to be spaced out for kids under 12 is yet to come.
Read the full story from the Star's Maria Sarrouh.
6:16 a.m.: The COVID-Zero movement, by its nature, does not gather in crowds or protest in the streets. But online it is loud and growing - full of keyboard warriors and dogged believers that those jurisdictions that have tried to live with some level of COVID-19 have gotten it wrong. To them, any level of COVID-19 transmission in the community is too much, and they're furious at public health officials and leaders who they say are responsible for allowing COVID-19 to flourish.
In many ways COVID-Zero has become the antithesis to the antimasker crowd that is fighting every public health restriction thrown their way. Unlike the antimaskers, they have rigorous scientific research on their side, and real-world examples showing COVID-Zero has worked in some places.
But like the antimaskers, the COVID-Zero crowd is directing intense ire toward public health officials and politicians - in their case saying the restrictions are not heavy enough, and that if they had been stronger at the beginning we may all be back to living normally right now.
Read the full story from the Star's Alex McKeen.
6:07 a.m.: Bulgaria and Romania are lagging dramatically behind as the EU's two least-vaccinated nations, with just 22% and 33% of their adult populations fully inoculated. Rapidly increasing new infections have forced authorities to tighten virus restrictions in the two countries, while other EU nations such as France, Spain, Denmark and Portugal have all exceeded 80% vaccine coverage and eased restrictions.
Stella Kyriakides, the EU's health commissioner, said the worrying gap" on vaccinations needs urgently addressing. Slovakia, Croatia and Latvia have vaccinated around 50% of all their adults. But jab uptake in many Central and Eastern European countries has remained weak or declined.
In Norway, which has vaccinated around 70%, authorities on Saturday scrapped restrictions that Prime Minister Erna Holberg called the strictest measures in peacetime." Nordic neighbour Denmark lifted virus restrictions on Sept. 10, while the U.K. has also abandoned most pandemic restrictions due to high vaccine rates.
In contrast, at Bucharest's Marius Nasta Institute of Pneumology, the ICU's chief doctor, Genoveva Cadar, says its beds are now at 100% capacity and around 98% of all its virus patients are unvaccinated.
In comparison to previous waves, people are arriving with more severe forms" of the disease, she said, adding that many patients in this latest surge are younger than in previous ones. Very quickly they end up intubated - and the prognosis is extremely bleak."
6:02 a.m.: A federal appeals panel says New York City may require teachers to be vaccinated against the coronavirus.
The three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals acted late Monday to lift a temporary order issued Friday that blocked the mandate from taking effect so a challenge could be heard from a group of teachers.
The mandate had been set to go into effect Monday for teachers and other employees of the city's schools. The appeals panel's ruling put the mandate back in force.
Lawyers for the teachers said they will now ask the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene. One attorney said: With thousands of teachers not vaccinated the city may regret what it wished for. Our children will be left with no teachers and no security in schools."
6:02 a.m.: New Zealand is relaxing travel restrictions in Auckland six weeks after the nation's most populous city was locked down due to the coronavirus.
People will be able to cross the city boundary beginning Monday night if they are permanently relocating, have shared caring-giving arrangements or are returning home. Those leaving Auckland on care-giving trips will have to be tested for the virus within a week of their departure.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says more flexibility is being given because the system of pandemic restrictions is currently doing its job."
The city reported eight new infections Tuesday in the latest 24-hour period. Auckland was locked down Aug. 17 after the delta variant leaked from hotel quarantine from a New Zealander who had returned from Sydney.
Pandemic restrictions elsewhere in New Zealand amount to little more than mandatory mask-wearing.
6:02 a.m.: Australia's Victoria state has recorded more coronavirus infections than New South Wales for the first time since an outbreak of the delta variant began in Sydney in June.
Victoria is Australia's second-most populous state and on Tuesday the state capital of Melbourne reported 867 new virus cases and four deaths from COVID-19 in the latest 24-hour period.
It was the highest daily numbers of infections and deaths in Victoria for the latest outbreak. Victoria's previous high infection count was 847 reported Saturday.
New South Wales is the most populous state and home to Sydney, which reported 863 new infections Tuesday and seven deaths. The state has seen daily infections plateau as vaccinations have risen.
Sydney has been in lockdown since June 26 and Melbourne since Aug. 5.
6:01 a.m.: Pakistan's planning minister says the government will begin a drive to vaccinate children ages 12 and above to protect them from the coronavirus.
The announcement by Planning Minister Asad Umar came Tuesday amid a steady decline in COVID-19 deaths across the country.
Umar said in a tweet that the government would soon launch a campaign soon to vaccinate children at schools. He did not give a precise date.
Pakistan is currently offering free vaccine shots to teenagers and adults.
The country on Tuesday reported 41 more COVID-19 deaths and 1,400 new cases in the past 24 hours. It was the first time since July that Pakistan confirmed fewer than 1,500 daily cases.
6 a.m.: Portugal is winding up its military-led vaccine task force after almost reaching its target of fully inoculating 85% of the population against COVID-19.
The task force, led for the past eight months by a senior naval officer from a NATO building near Lisbon, is to be replaced by three teams reporting to the Health Ministry.
Portugal's vaccination drive e rollout is the most advanced in the world, with 84.88% of the country's 10.3 million people having received shots, according to Our World in Data.
Portugal is scrapping most of its pandemic restrictions starting Friday.
Prime Minister Antonio Costa said many people deserved credit for the country's expeditious vaccine rollout, but he singled out Portugal's acceptance of vaccinations as the prime reason for success.
Portugal has no significant anti-vaccination movement and is one of the European Union's leading countries in terms of vaccine uptake for illnesses such as measles and influenza.
6 a.m.: Japan's government says the coronavirus state of emergency will end Thursday so the economy can be reactivated as infections slow.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga announced Tuesday that virus restrictions will be eased gradually.
With the lifting, Japan will be entirely free of emergency requirements for the first time in more than six months.
Japan's current state of emergency, declared in April, was repeatedly extended and expanded. Despite public weariness and frustration over the measures, Japan has managed to avoid the more restrictive lockdowns imposed elsewhere while recording about 1.69 million cases and 17,500 deaths from COVID-19.
5:45 a.m.: (updated) Ontario's science advisory table is set to release new COVID-19 projections Tuesday.
Ontario's daily case counts have so far remained under 1,000 during the fourth wave, and the graph of Ontario's seven-day average roughly shows a plateau since the beginning of September.
That's well under the worst-case scenario in Ontario's previous modelling, which showed about 4,000 daily cases by now.
Reality is more in line with the best-case scenario, in which cases would have steadily fallen since Sept. 1.
On Monday, Ontario reported 613 new COVID-19 cases and no new deaths.