The B.C. Liberals are expressing “deep concern” about transparency around COVID-19-related data and is calling for the province to release additional information on the pandemic.
In a letter sent to Health Minister Adrian Dix Monday, BC Liberal MLAs Renee Merrifield and Jackie Tegart say the public needs more information in order to make “the best possible decisions.”
“As we enter the second year of this pandemic, the need for transparency has never been more important to British Columbians. Access to clear, consistent, and easy-to-understand data helps people better understand the risks posed by the virus, helps better inform their decision making, and helps promote greater public compliance with public health orders,” the letter reads.
“In recent months, there has been a steady call for more detailed COVID-19 data from educators and parents of school-aged children, community leaders, seniors care advocates, family members of seniors in long-term care, local governments, and members of the media.”
After public pressure, the B.C. government started releasing COVID-19 deaths and cases for all long-term care and assisted living facilities in the province last week. The government stopped providing the data in October because of IT concerns and has now committed to releasing it once a week.
The B.C. Liberals are requesting five categories of data to be released:
- The number of vaccinations delivered and administered in each health authority on a daily basis;
- The number of rapid tests delivered and administered in each health authority in a daily basis;
- Daily case breakdowns for schools (identified by staff/student populations), long-term care homes and assisted living facilities (identified by resident/staff populations) and health care facilities (identified by doctor/nurse/health-care worker populations);
- Daily breakdown of total MSP-billable (public) and non-MSP-billable (private) tests performed; and
- Race-based COVID-19 data.
“For the health, safety, and confidence of British Columbians, we hope you take immediate efforts to provide the COVID-19 data we have requested and, ultimately, trust British Columbians with this information that they deserve to have access to during these difficult times,” the letter concludes.
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