Daily COVID-19 Update: May 4, 2020

City Announces COVID-19 Assistance Package

City Council announced a COVID-19 assistance package to support residents and businesses in coping with and recovering from the economic impacts of the pandemic. The package was introduced at the May 4 meeting of City Council and includes support for both residents and business owners.

Although the responsibility for public health and economic well-being of the community largely rests with other levels of senior government, the City has chosen to augment and support provincial and federal programs to customize for local conditions.

The package includes up to $8.2 million dollar in support consisting of the following:

• $3.9M COVID property tax credit for all classes (subject to final 2020 Assessment values completed early May). This will be achieved by maintaining all municipal taxes at 2019 rates (originally set to increase by 3.5% for 2020)
• $0.3M relating to three-month payment deferral of property taxes and utilities with a 12-month repayment plan for arrears (up to 24-month repayment plan on a case-by-case basis.) 
• Up to $2M grant for reinvestment into local businesses. The fund will be facilitated by Community Futures Entre-Corp in $500,000 tranches. Entre-Corp is a trusted and capable entity, and is well-equipped to facilitate fund redistribution as per their current mandate. The City will provide criteria to ensure appropriate adjudication of applicants.  
• Up to $1M support for vulnerable residents. Offered via $250,000 tranches as needed, the contribution will be shared between Community Warmth and Community Foundation of Southeastern Alberta.
• Up to $1M for inducements to achieve / expedite economic development, and financial amendments to existing contractual arrangements on a case-by-case basis. This fund will be facilitated by the CAO office.

The City has also submitted to the Province a list of shovel-worthy capital projects that may qualify for Federal or Provincial Government stimulus spending. Read more.

Reopening Canada’s Economy

The COVID-19 pandemic curve is starting to flatten; provinces and territories are allowing businesses to reopen, and Canada needs a plan to restart the economy. The Canadian Chamber of Commerce has identified five key areas that need to be part of the country’s strategy to reopen the economy quickly and safely:

• Providing advice to government
• International best practices
• Interprovincial alignment
• Governmental financial assistance
• International Trade

Find more information on the Canadian Business Reliance Network here. What supports or information do you need? Email us at policy@medicinehatchamber.com with any comments, concerns or questions you may have about recovery.

Commitment to Maintain Global Supply Chains

The G20 Trade and Investment Ministers, along with Ministers of attending guest invitees, reaffirmed their collective determination to ensure the continued flow of goods, services and personnel as well as maintaining global supply chains. The statement committed to:

• working to ensure the flow of goods in global supply chains 
• facilitating the essential movement of people
• minimizing the negative Impacts on trade and investment arising from the pandemic to facilitate an inclusive and sustainable economic recovery

Read the full statement.

Canada Child Benefit and Goods and Services Tax Credit

Families receiving the Canada Child Benefit (CCB) will get $300 extra per child in May to help them deal with the added pressures of COVID-19. Eligible families will automatically receive this one-time increase as part of their scheduled CCB payment in May. Those who already receive the CCB do not need to re-apply for this one-time increase. In addition to this one-time CCB increase, the Government has provided individuals and families with low and modest incomes with a special top-up payment through the Goods and Services Tax credit. This measure gave, on average, close to $400 for single individuals and close to $600 for couples. The tax filing deadline was also extended to June 1, 2020.

Nurse Practitioners to Provide Expanded Care 

Alberta is modifying regulations to allow nurse practitioners to provide expanded care to nursing home residents during COVID-19. Changes to the nursing home regulations will allow nurse practitioners to act as primary care providers in nursing homes, admitting and assessing residents, as well as offering follow-up care. Changes will also enable nurse practitioners and other qualified health professionals to prescribe medication and order treatments in nursing homes, according to their scopes of practice.

Resuming Non-Urgent Surgeries and Allied Health Services

As part of its relaunch strategy, the Alberta government has developed a plan to lift some restrictions on non-urgent surgeries and other regulated professional health services. As Alberta continues to flatten the curve of COVID-19 infections, the province is ready to lift some of the restrictions on non-urgent scheduled day surgeries in regions where hospital and clinic capacity and the rate of new COVID-19 infections does not present a significant risk. A carefully controlled and phased approach will be used, with the most urgent patients and those waiting the longest receiving care first.

The first priority will be to treat patients who would be at the highest risk if their surgery was further delayed and those who have been waiting longest. AHS has created a centralized booking system, and will contact patients on wait-lists to reschedule procedures. As procedures ramp up, the province will continue to evaluate and determine additional procedures that can resume, such as short-term overnight stays.

In addition to resuming some non-urgent surgeries, independent regulated health professionals, such as chiropractors, physiotherapists, psychologists and other community providers, including optometrists, audiologists and dieticians, are also permitted to resume operations as long as they are able to follow Alberta Health guidance to limit transmission in these settings.

The Government of Alberta is working closely with the professional colleges that govern allied health professionals in Alberta to develop guidelines for their members who choose to resume operations. This includes guidelines related to physical distancing, patient screening, care of patients with COVID-19, use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and cleaning procedures. In the meantime, as these guidelines are being developed, health professionals should follow Alberta Health guidelines on safe practices. Each clinic or practitioner will be responsible for determining their ability to keep themselves, their patients and staff safe.

Prime Minister announces virtual care and mental health tools for Canadians

The Government of Canada announced an investment of $240.5 million to develop, expand, and launch virtual care and mental health tools to support Canadians. Working with provinces, territories, and stakeholders, this investment will be used to create digital platforms and applications, improve access to virtual mental health supports, and expand capacity to deliver health care virtually, including projects to reach vulnerable Canadians. This investment will:

• help Canadians safely engage with their regular health providers and specialist health services through telephone, text, or video-conferencing;
• support access to mental health supports and reliable health information in a safe and secure manner, which will reduce the pressure on our health system;
• help governments, public health officials, hospitals, and health care facilities make evidence-based decisions; and
• support federal, provincial, and territorial initiatives in collaboration with innovators, health stakeholders, and organizations like Canada Health Infoway, to expand virtual health services to Canadians.

The Government of Canada has a suite of digital tools to help support the physical and mental health and well-being of Canadians during COVID-19. These include:

• Wellness Together Canada, an online portal dedicated to mental wellness and substance use support. It connects Canadians to peer support workers, social workers, psychologists, and other professionals for confidential chat sessions or phone calls, and makes it easier to find credible information and help address mental health and substance use issues.
• Canada COVID-19, a mobile app that features a symptom tracker, a self-assessment tool, trustworthy up-to-date information on COVID-19, as well as information on mental health and substance use support.
• Get Updates on COVID-19, a web-based email service that provides subscribers with critical information related to the pandemic. Subscribers receive emails directing them to important and authoritative content on the Government of Canada’s COVID-19 website.

Canada and International Partners Launch the Coronavirus Global Response

Canadian and international researchers are racing to develop diagnostics, treatments, and vaccines that will save lives, protect the health and safety of people everywhere, and lay the groundwork for a sustainable worldwide economic recovery.

The Government of Canada has joined other global leaders to launch the Coronavirus Global Response. This online pledging event aims to initially raise more than $8 billion (USD) to help researchers and innovators develop solutions to test, treat, and protect people, and to prevent the further spread of COVID-19.

The Prime Minister highlighted that, to date, the Government of Canada has announced investments of over $850 million (CAD) that support this fundraising target. This includes funding to:

• mobilize Canadian researchers’ and life sciences companies’ coronavirus research and development of medical countermeasures;
• support accelerated vaccine development, including through the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations and other partners;
• find a safe and effective treatment for COVID-19 through the World Health Organization (WHO) Solidarity Trial;
• coordinate a COVID-19 viral and host genome sequencing effort across Canada;
• help provide COVID-19 diagnostic support to more than 20 partner countries; and
• create strategies to tackle misinformation, stigma, and fear.

In today’s interconnected world, the global health system relies on the strength of all regions to ensure a sustainable global recovery. That is why the government is providing funding to support some of the world’s most vulnerable populations, and working with international partners as they coordinate and prioritize response efforts in vulnerable countries. The aim is to maximize global benefits from these investments, and commit to helping to ensure that once a vaccine is developed, it will be produced at a scale and cost accessible to all countries.

Find information on this international fundraising effort here.