Equal mix of travellers and community cases of coronavirus in Canada
Posted March 24, 2020 1:16 pm.
Last Updated March 24, 2020 2:24 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer says there is now an almost “equal mix” of travel-related cases of coronavirus and those exposed in a community setting in Canada.
Dr. Theresa Tam said in a press briefing on Tuesday that over 120,000 people have been tested for COVID-19 in Canada, averaging about 10,000 a day.
Of those cases that test positive, Deputy Chief Public Health Officer, Dr. Howard Njoo confirmed about half are community spread.
“If you look at the percentages overall it’s about 50-50 — travel vs. community spread. But now we are seeing a trend from last week that most of the cases reported to the public health agency are linked to community transmission.”
There are currently 2,176 confirmed cases in the country, with 25 deaths.
Tam added that 220 repatriated passengers from the Grand Princess cruise ship, who were symptom free after their 14 day quarantine period, were released Tuesday from CFB Trenton.
Other passengers who tested positive for the virus will remain at Trenton until their extended release date, along with their asymptomatic contacts whose quarantine period has now been reset.
Tam reiterated that anyone who has travelled outside of Canada must self-isolate for 14 days, even if they are not showing symptoms.
