Saskatchewan’s official Opposition is calling for more clarity from the government on what is being done to protect people from a possible spike in COVID-19 cases.
NDP health critic Vicki Mowat said variants are raising the fear of a possible third wave of the coronavirus pandemic in the province.
“The stakes are high. A third wave could overwhelm our already stretched and stressed health-care system,” Mowat said Friday in a statement.
She said Premier Scott Moe and Health Minister Paul Merriman failed to act during the second wave and families “paid the price.”
“While other provinces saw steep reductions in case counts and death rates, Saskatchewan led the nation. That can’t happen again,” Mowat said.
“The premier needs to lay out a clear plan that Saskatchewan families can count on.”
On Thursday, Moe urged interprovincial travellers to get tested upon their return to Saskatchewan and to plan for followup testing in seven days.
“The risk has changed,” Moe said after touring a mass vaccination clinic being set up in Regina. “The risk now is that you might not only contract COVID, you may contract one of the new variants.”
Moe also said he is not ruling out a future two-week quarantine for people coming into the province.
Earlier in the week, the government announced the current public health measures in the province are being extended to March 19.
Measures in place include mandatory masking in all public spaces and banning household visits.
The only exception is single individuals, who are allowed to meet with one household of fewer than five people provided it is always the same household.
Also on Friday, Mowat called upon the government to use the millions of dollars in the province’s “contingency fund” to hire more staff for long-term care homes and laboratories.
She also called for widespread rapid testing in schools, care homes and high-rise communities.
The government has issued a tender for emergency support workers to help staff personal care homes where COVID-19 outbreaks have been declared.
Merriman said this will help free up Saskatchewan Health Authority staff who have been backfilling those positions in care homes.
“This is all hands on deck and we’re really pulling on everybody to be able to do this,” Merriman said Thursday, adding the province is reaching out to post-secondary students and retired health-care workers for help.
— With files from Roberta Bell and the Canadian Press