Canada closes borders to most foreigners to fight spread of COVID-19

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada is closing its borders to most people who are not citizens or permanent residents to slow the spread of COVID-19.

There will be exceptions carved out for air crews, diplomats, U.S. citizens and people with family in the country. These measures will go into effect on Wednesday at 12 p.m.

The move comes as Minister of Healthy Patty Hadju confirmed they have seen community transmission and the number of cases diagnosed continues to accelerate daily.

Trudeau says the country is taking “increasingly aggressive steps” to keep everyone safe.

As part of those steps, the federal government is mandating air carriers to screen passengers with symptoms of the novel coronavirus out of lines so they don’t board planes home.

Air operators will be formally mandated to prevent those who present symptoms of COVID-19 from boarding a plane. They will have to complete a basic health assessment of every air traveller based on guidance from Public Health Canada.

Trudeau says they will also only allow international flights to land at four airports in Canada starting on Wednesday – Toronto Pearson Airport, Pierre Trudeau Airport in Montreal, Vancouver International Airport and Calgary International Airport.

He says that doesn’t apply to trade and business flights, as well as those from the U.S., Mexico, the Caribbean as well as Saint Pierre and Miquelon.

The travel restrictions will not apply to trade or commerce and the supply of important goods will continue to flow.

When asked why U.S. citizens were exempt from this travel ban, Trudeau said the level of integration between U.S. and Canadian economies puts them in a separate category from the rest of the world. He added coordination between the two countries will continue as the situation evolves.

Trudeau says Canadians who are not in Canada need to come home immediately and is establishing a fund to help people who are finding it financially difficult to arrange travel home in the face of soaring ticket prices.

Travellers still must isolate themselves for 14 days after they arrive.

As of 9 a.m. Monday, there were 324 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Canada, and 17 probable cases. The Public Health Agency of Canada reported that 13 per cent of those cases required hospitalization. Almost three-quarters of the cases were people who travelled outside of Canada recently, but public health officials also stressed there is community transmission happening now more frequently.

The number of cases over the weekend almost doubled, prompting an escalation in the message to Canadians from Dr. Teresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer over the weekend.

“Our window to flatten the curve of the epidemic is narrow,” Tam said Sunday. “We all need to act now. COVID-19 is a serious public health threat.”

If people don’t stay home in an effort to “social distance,” the virus will spread so quickly that too many people will need urgent medical care at once, she said.

As a result, many businesses and governments directed employees who can to work from home Monday, and several non-food retailers and fitness clubs announced they will be closing temporarily and telling employees to stay home.