To address the Omicron variant that is creating an outbreak of new COVID-19 cases, additional health restrictions will go into effect starting Monday in Quebec.
The provincial government on Thursday asked Quebecers to reduce their social contacts by 50%. With this in mind, restaurants, bars, casinos, gyms, theaters and cinemas, as well as conferences, should limit their capacity to 50%. The dance and karaoke ban will be reinstated, barely a month after being revoked.
In stores and shopping centers, the limit has been set at one customer for every 20 square meters of surface. This measure does not affect personal care establishments such as hairdressers and masseurs. After-Christmas sales opening hours will be extended on December 26.
The 50% rule will also apply to places of worship and for essential public activities, such as assemblies that can accommodate a maximum of 250 people, but will now have to require the vaccination passport.
For funerals, the current capacity of a rotation of 50 people present at a time is maintained. Public Health authorizes the performance of marriage ceremonies or funerals without the need for a vaccination passport, but with a maximum of 25 people.
For private gatherings indoors, the limit remains the same, be it 10 people or the occupants of three residences. Quebec has backed down from the possibility of holding meetings of 20 people as of December 23.
Read more:
With COVID Cases Rising Due To Omicron, Homeless Advocates Worry
As of December 20, the measures will also be tightened in CHSLD, private residences for the elderly, intermediate resources (RI) and certain family-type resources (RTF). For example, only one visitor or family caregiver at a time, for a maximum number of four people per day, will be authorized to visit a person who lives, among others, in CHSLD and certain RI-RTFs. It will also be prohibited for family members and visitors to access common areas, with the exception of family members who help feed a resident.
In education, the use of masks has been reintroduced in class and in common areas. The face-to-face return after the holidays is scheduled for January 10 for the secondary, college, university and vocational training sectors. The scheduled start date for the primary level is maintained.
There are also new restrictions on sports and recreation. It includes suspension from tournaments or competition and a limit of 25 participants inside.
Quebec also highly recommends working from home. The use of a mask at all times and a physical distance of 2 meters must be respected again in the workplace.
200,000 rapid test kits
Read more:
COVID-19 reports 3,846 new cases in Quebec, three more deaths
Another action added due to the appearance of the new variant: the delivery of rapid tests to pharmacies. The first shipments should reach nearly 2,000 pharmacies in Quebec by Monday.
Each of them should receive a first case of 108 five-test kits starting tomorrow, or Tuesday at the latest for selected pharmacies located in more remote regions, announced the Association of Quebec Pharmaceutical Distributors (AQDP).
“Subsequently, every day until December 23, new rapid tests will arrive in Quebec and will be immediately distributed by distributors to all pharmacies in Quebec,” AQDP said in a press release on Sunday.
The mandate to deliver some 800,000 COVID-19 test kits to pharmacies at the beginning of the Christmas season has been given to pharmaceutical distributors in Quebec, who supply medicines to all hospitals and pharmacies in the region on a daily basis. Province.
“We anticipate strong demand in Quebec and are fully aware of the challenges associated with limited supplies. We are asking our pharmaceutical-owner partners for the patience and collaboration of the population in this context, ”said AQDP President Albert Falardeau.
INDEX: General Health News
© 2021 The Canadian Press
Reference-globalnews.ca