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omicron quebec

covid-19 quebec

An Omicron Variant COVID-19 Vaccine Is Arriving In Quebec On Thursday

Quebecers will soon be able to get an updated COVID-19 vaccine that targets the Omicron variant. Public Health Director Dr. Luc Boileau said the shot would be available at most vaccination centres in the province by the afternoon of Thursday, September 8.

The updated Moderna vaccine is bivalent, offering two kinds of protection against the original COVID-19 strain and BA.1 subvariant. It will be prioritized for residents over 30 years old, said Boileau. Those 30 and under will continue to receive the Pfizer vaccine.

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covid-19 quebec

Quebec COVID-19 Rules For Easter & Passover Are Kind Of Up To You

So Easter and Passover are on in Quebec this year... sort of. At least it'll be better than last year. In a press conference on April 13, interim National Public Health Director Dr. Luc Boileau dolled out what we know about the Omicron variant and Omicron BA.2 subvariant, then left it in the hands of Quebecers to make smart choices.

"We're not suggesting not to gather," Dr. Boileau said. "We're suggesting to do so being conscious of the risk and being careful with who we are going to meet."

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covid-19 quebec

The Most Common BA.2 & Omicron Symptoms In Quebec Aren't The Ones You Might Expect

COVID-19 in Quebec is seeing a surge of cases with both the main strain of Omicron and its subvariant BA.2 gaining traction. On April 13, Quebec Director of Public Health, Dr. Luc Boileau, gave an update regarding the current epidemiological situation throughout the province, detailing common COVID-19 symptoms of which to be aware.

While respiratory symptoms, fever, and loss of taste and smell have long been indicated as symptoms to look out for, Dr. Boileau has stated that these are no longer the most common symptoms with the newest variants.

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quebec mask mandate

The Quebec Mask Mandate Will Likely Be Extended Thanks To The COVID-19 6th Wave

You may have been looking forward to packing away all your masks until the next pandemic, but they might be useful for a little longer. While officials had planned on ending the Quebec mask mandate for most public spaces in mid-April, it's looking like that deadline will be postponed.

"We're considering whether it would be appropriate to push back that date," interim National Public Health Director Dr. Luc Boileau said on Radio-Canada on April 3. "It's certainly conceivable that recommendations will go in that direction."

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covid-19 quebec

Could A 6th COVID-19 Wave Hit Quebec? Here's What Officials Have Said So Far

As COVID-19 numbers continue to rise in Europe, and restrictions are being lifted here at home, Quebecers might be starting to wonder: are we due for a sixth wave of COVID-19 infections? The answer is maybe, according to the Minister of Health and Social Services Christian Dubé — but he's confident it will be manageable.

In a March 16 press conference, Christian Dubé said that there was a possibility of a sixth wave, but that "it's a possibility that we can manage right now." According to Dubé, we can thank Quebec's vaccination rate, the rate of infection in Quebec in December and January, and the time of year for the reduced risk posed by a potential sixth wave.

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covid-19 montreal

Will Montreal COVID-19 Cases Surge When Measures Are Dropped? New Projections Are Out

With the Omicron variant on its way out, Quebec has been seeing a further relaxation of safety measures every Monday. Notably, office workers can remove their masks while working under some conditions, and children will no longer need to wear masks in class starting on March 7. But amid all these changes, could there be another surge in Montreal COVID-19 cases?

The Institut national de santé publique du Québec (INSPQ) teamed up with the Research Group in Mathematical Modeling and Health Economics of Infectious Disease at Laval University to run the numbers and make predictions. The INSPQ worked under the assumption that around one in three Montrealers were infected with COVID-19 since December 1, 2021.

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covid-19 montreal

Welcome To Montreal's COVID-19 'Transition' Phase — Officials Say Worst Of Omicron Is Over

During a February 23 news conference, two top Montreal public health officials announced that the worst of the Omicron variant wave is now behind us, in what felt like a COVID-19 closing ceremony.

Dr. Mylène Drouin, Montreal's regional director of public health, and Sonia Bélanger, who heads the CIUSSS du Centre-Sud-de-l'île-de-Montréal, both offered their thanks to health care workers and said they hoped this would be their final news conference about the pandemic.

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covid-19 quebec

Quebec Public Health Isn't Ruling Out The Possibility Of More COVID-19 Vaccine Doses

As we approach what Premier François Legault, at least, has described as a "more normal life," Quebec public health isn't ruling out the possibility of more COVID-19 vaccine doses in the future.

"We're going to have to renew the immunity of the population, hoping that we renew it not through infections but by vaccination," interim National Public Health Director Dr. Luc Boileau said Wednesday.

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quebec jobs

Omicron Really Crushed Quebec Restaurant & Service Workers In January

COVID-19 has not been playing around, particularly when it comes to the Omicron variant's impact on employment. In January 2022, Quebec experienced a loss of 63,000 jobs according to Statistics Canada, with accommodation and food services being the hardest-hit industries.

This dip in employment was the first major decline in 12 months, when the province was also under strict health measures, StatCan reports. In December 2021, Premier François Legault imposed a provincewide curfew along with a ban on indoor dining, which Statistics Canada links to Quebec's 1.4% total decline in employment seen last month.

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covid-19 quebec

Quebec Rapid Test Results Can Now Be Self-Reported On A New Platform

For those who've been wondering where the heck to send your Quebec rapid test results, there's finally a self-reporting platform where you can do so.

In a news release on January 25, 2022, the provincial government announced this new platform which "will allow people to transmit their rapid test results, whether negative or positive, for statistical purposes and to better fight the spread of the virus in the community."

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covid-19 quebec

Quebec Is Reporting Over 15,000 New COVID-19 Cases & 165 More Hospitalizations

Happy Monday — Quebec just reported 15,293 new daily COVID-19 cases.

Every day from December 28, 2021, to January 1, 2022, the province continuously beat the previous day's record of new cases reported. On January 1, the province recorded the highest number we've seen since the start of the pandemic, reporting 17,122 new infections in the previous 24 hours.

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covid-19 montreal

Quebec's First COVID-19 Report In 4 Days Shows 10 More Deaths & 614 Total Hospitalizations

Quebec released its first COVID-19 report since December 23 on Monday morning, showing 10 additional deaths and a total of 614 hospitalizations — an increase of 141 since the last report.

Of those people in the hospital due to COVID-19, 109 are in intensive care, up from 91 as of December 22.

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