A Main Street coffee shop has reverted to takeout only, citing concern about double vaccinated unhoused people not having access to COVID-19 vaccine passports. “Those with no fixed address and no smartphone will inevitably be unfairly refused service as the province has no solution to meet the needs of the marginalized and others on the…
Category: Community News
Canada on course for worst wave of COVID-19 yet, new modelling data shows
TORONTO — Reported daily COVID-19 caseloads in Canada could reach unprecedented highs later this month if current levels of virus transmission are not reduced, new federal modelling data shows. On the eve of the Labour Day weekend, chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam took aim at young adults, describing an “urgent need” for more…
To avoid 15,000 daily COVID-19 cases next month, Canada urged to increase vaccination rates, uphold public health measures
Increasing vaccination rates among young people and upholding public-health measures like masking and physical distancingcould help Canada avoid record numbers of daily COVID-19 cases in the fall, according to new modelling by the federal government. Projections by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) show that if the current rate of COVID-19 transmission holds, the…
They rolled up their sleeves for science. Now, Ontario vaccine trial participants may be left out of vaccine certificates
When Nicolas Lacasse sat down for an injection as part of the first large-scale trial of a Canadian-made COVID-19 vaccine, he wasn’t told if he was getting the real thing or a placebo — he still doesn’t know. What he knows for sure is that he has not yet received a COVID-19 vaccine authorized by…
Vaccine passports pose an equity problem
Zackary Berger is a primary care physician and bioethicist at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and the Esperanza Center, both in Baltimore. Andray Domise is a Toronto-based writer. Recently, New York City became the first American city to declare that workers and customers alike will require proof of having received at least one vaccine dose,…
The racist history of Chinese labour in Canada shows not much has changed. Deemed essential, but still invisible
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Chinese Canadians and other visible Asians became targets of threats and attacks in the nonsensical scapegoating of the coronavirus. In 2020, the Chinese Canadian National Council Toronto Chapter (CCNCTO) and community partners across Canada documented 1150 cases of racist attacks nationally, with Vancouver seeing a 717 per cent increase in anti-Asian hate crimes. Asian…
Ontario is facing ‘substantial’ fourth wave of COVID-19, first modelling since June suggests
TORONTO — Ontario is facing a “substantial” fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and could see daily case counts reach 9,000 by October in a worst-case scenario, according to new modelling. The modelling, which was prepared by Ontario’s Science Advisory Table, suggests that case counts could rise exponentially in the fall if Ontarians do not…
Ontario’s COVID-19 vaccine certificate plan will bar unvaccinated from many businesses, services
Saying it’s something he “didn’t want to do” Premier Doug Ford unveiled a COVID-19 vaccine “certificate” plan on Wednesday that will mandate Ontarians show proof of being fully vaccinated before they can access a slew of non-essential businesses and services. The first step of the plan goes into effect on September 22. That’s when Ontarians…
The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on LGBT+ People’s Mental Health
Key Findings Historically, the LGBT+1 community has faced mental health and substance use problems at higher rates than their non-LGBT+ peers. The COVID-19 pandemic, which has disrupted the lives of people across the globe, has negatively impacted LGBT+ people’s mental health in disproportionate ways. In this data note, we pull together data from nationally representative surveys, adding to…
Patience at the polls and millions of pencils: How will a pandemic vote work?
OTTAWA — The moment Elections Canada has been planning for is finally here: A federal election in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The country’s top health officials say voting can happen safely while cases climb in the latest wave of the virus, but how exactly will casting a ballot work on Sept. 20? Elections…