Pricey and B次元官网网址渋rrationalB次元官网网址� COVID-19 tests, along with B次元官网网址渄iscriminatoryB次元官网网址� quarantine policies for kids, are making it difficult for families to travel even when all adults are fully vaccinated, according to members of the Canadian Travel and Tourism Roundtable.
All travellers over the age of five, regardless of citizenship or vaccination status, must provide proof of a negative COVID-19 molecular test in order to enter the country. Rapid antigen tests are not adequate under CanadaB次元官网网址檚 rules.
That can cost between $150 and $300 for each test, making it prohibitively expensive for many families.
Meanwhile, children canB次元官网网址檛 attend school, camp or daycare, be in crowded places or take public transportation for 14 days once they return home to Canada.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 irrational,B次元官网网址� said Perrin Beatty, president and CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, who is also co-chair of the roundtable. B次元官网网址淚t simply doesnB次元官网网址檛 make sense.B次元官网网址�
Beatty joined members of the travel and tourism industry at a press conference Thursday to call on the federal government to remove B次元官网网址渦nnecessary and non-science-basedB次元官网网址� obstacles to international travel for families.
B次元官网网址淭he critical consideration here is that people be doubly vaccinated,B次元官网网址� said Beatty, who served as federal health minister under former prime minister Brian Mulroney from 1989 to 1991.
B次元官网网址淚f somebody coming into Canada can demonstrate that theyB次元官网网址檝e been doubly vaccinated, then they meet the criteria for being low risk in Canada.B次元官网网址�
CanadaB次元官网网址檚 COVID-19 testing and screening expert advisory panel released a report in May that specifically recommended against pre-departure screening for vaccinated travellers. However that was before the Delta variant emerged, and the authors flagged their uncertainty about the potential impacts of variants of concern.
David Schwartz, a father of two who lives in Ottawa, said travel is out of reach for his family right now.
His family hoped to be with his in-laws in Texas to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary this winter, but molecular tests for all of them would add $800 to $1,000 to the cost of the trip.
They also canB次元官网网址檛 manage to keep both kids home for an extra two weeks after the trip is over.
A negative test with no symptoms should be enough to allow kids to return to school after travel, he said.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檝e done everything we could to support the pandemic effort as a family. We got vaccinated, we stayed home, we missed those family milestones,B次元官网网址� Schwartz said.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e asking the government today to please change the rules so we can begin to get back to normal life.B次元官网网址�
The latest figures from the Public Health Agency of Canada show that of all COVID-19 tests completed at the border on vaccinated travellers between Aug. 9 and Oct. 21, only 0.18 per cent were positive.
For unvaccinated and partially vaccinated travellers, 0.91 per cent were positive.
Last week, chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam said test requirements at the border are B次元官网网址渧ery much a live issue,B次元官网网址� but that she still believes pre-departure tests are an important layer of protection to prevent COVID-19 cases being imported to Canada.
B次元官网网址淔or now, we havenB次元官网网址檛 shifted that policy, but weB次元官网网址檙e reviewing that on an ongoing basis,B次元官网网址� Tam said Oct. 29. B次元官网网址淓specially during a period of time when Canada is still, in many areas, battling the fourth wave.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址擫aura Osman, The Canadian Press
