Canadians should carefully weigh any future decisions on taking foreign trips even though the federal government has lifted a global advisory asking them to avoid non-essential travel, health officials cautioned Friday.
Dr. Theresa Tam, CanadaB次元官网网址檚 chief public health officer, said the government would be providing more specific information about the severity of COVID-19 in various countries to help Canadians decide where they should consider travelling.
B次元官网网址淭he pandemic is very much alive. There are definitely still risks involved in travel,B次元官网网址� Tam said Friday. She said it was too soon for the government to give a B次元官网网址渂lanketB次元官网网址� recommendation on all travel, but said being fully vaccinated and assessing the level of the pandemic in any potential destination are key.
B次元官网网址淣ow is not the time to just freely go wherever.B次元官网网址�
The government announced Thursday that it was lifting the global advisory asking Canadians to avoid non-essential travel outside the country, but it was continuing to advise against travel on cruise ships.
The global travel advisory was put in place in March 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
Dr. Howard Njoo, the deputy chief public health officer, said Friday that Canadians should ask themselves a series of questions before they plan to travel abroad.
Njoo urged Canadians assess the B次元官网网址渆pidemiological situationB次元官网网址� of COVID-19 in any potential travel destination B次元官网网址渂ecause there is great variation between different countries and even within countries, as weB次元官网网址檝e seen here in Canada.B次元官网网址�
They should also look at the level of vaccination rates in those country B次元官网网址渂ecause thatB次元官网网址檚 an indication of what community transmission in that region may be.B次元官网网址�
Canadian travellers should also ask themselves what they actually want to do when they get to another country. B次元官网网址淔or example, if youB次元官网网址檙e going to go on solitary nature hikes, thatB次元官网网址檚 one thing. But if youB次元官网网址檙e thinking of going on a cruise with a lot of people in an enclosed space, thatB次元官网网址檚 another thing,B次元官网网址� said Njoo.
Canadians should also weigh the B次元官网网址渃ulture for individual protection measuresB次元官网网址� in where they are thinking of travelling, such as whether masks are commonly worn, or not, he said.
B次元官网网址淲e know that the situation is not the same in all parts of the world. There are regions in the world that are still suffering from the severe consequences of COVID-19,B次元官网网址� he said.
The government of CanadaB次元官网网址檚 website now shows advisories for each destination country, as it did prior to the pandemic.
It also urges Canadians to ensure they are fully vaccinated against the novel coronavirus before travelling abroad, and to stay informed of the COVID-19 situation at their destination.
The move comes as the federal government announced it had reached an agreement with the provinces on a new national vaccine passport for domestic and international travel.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Thursday that provinces and territories have agreed to adjust their own vaccine passports to give them the same look, feel and security measures based on the international standard for so-called Smart health cards.
Several have already started distributing proof-of-vaccination documents, including Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Quebec, Ontario, Nunavut, Saskatchewan, Northwest Territories and Yukon.
Canada opened its borders last month to non-essential international travellers who have received both doses of a Health Canada-approved COVID-19 vaccine, and to fully vaccinated travellers from the United States in August.
The U.S. government recently announced that its land borders will reopen to non-essential Canadian travellers on Nov. 8.
B次元官网网址擬ike Blanchfield, The Canadian Press
