Two new COVID-19 cases, nine more recoveries; Sask. extends state of emergency

Despite another day with a low number of new COVID-19 cases, the Government of Saskatchewan on Thursday extended the provincial state of emergency for another two weeks.

“While new case numbers remain low, residents are reminded that COVID-19 is still present in Saskatchewan,” the government said in a media release. “Public health orders remain in effect, including the order limiting public and private gatherings to no more than 10 people.

“The declaration (Wednesday) of a community-transmitted outbreak in Saskatoon linked to two large family gatherings reinforces the importance of following public health orders.”

At Thursday’s provincial update, Premier Scott Moe was asked why no fines have been given out to those who organized or attended the events. Moe said the goal of the public health orders is to have people comply, not to fine them – mostly they’ve been relying on education.

“There have been some fines that have been administered over the last few months, but those have only come about after great outreach with respect to education, warnings, and then ultimately if there still is not compliance with the public health orders then there have been very few fines that have been administered,” said Moe.

The provincial state of emergency was declared initially on March 18.

The limits on the size of gatherings are to increase when Phase 3 of the Re-Open Saskatchewan plan takes effect. As of June 8 — the targeted start date for the phase — indoor gatherings can include up to 15 people and outdoor get-togethers can include a maximum of 30 people.

On Thursday, Saskatchewan’s Chief Medical Health Officer, Dr. Saqib Shahab, said we should all be thinking about the third phase already, that we should be considering how we’re going to behave and engage.

“I think going to restaurants is going to be a different experience from shopping. So going with your household initially, so you’re maintaining the same group but you’re having the pleasure of actually eating out instead of taking food out,” said Shahab.

Even though the gathering limit is rising, Shahab said we should be thoughtful about any potential gatherings.

“Why are we having a gathering? How are we going to lay things out? How can we serve food in a pre-prepared place, for example, and not have everyone helping themselves,” said Shahab

Shahab said they’re getting a lot of questions about outdoor physical activity and sports. He said they’re working on guidelines for outdoor recreational activities for the summer that will be included in Phase 4, whenever that’s set to happen.

The government announced there were two new cases as of Thursday, increasing the total in Saskatchewan to date to 639.

One of the new cases is in Saskatoon and one is in the north.

Of the total number of cases, 253 have been in the far north, 168 are from the Saskatoon area, 112 have been in the north, 78 are from the Regina area, 16 are from the south and 12 have been in the central region.

To date, 369 of the cases have involved community contacts, 141 have been travellers, 76 haven’t had any known exposures, and 53 remain under investigation by local public health officials.

The number of health-care workers who have contracted the virus is 50.

There have been 228 cases in the 20-to-39 age range, 195 among people between the ages of 40 and 59, 104 among those in the 60-to-79 age range, 94 involving people aged 19 or under, and 18 in the 80-and-over age group.

Nine more people are said to have recovered, raising the total so far in Saskatchewan to 568. To date, 10 residents of the province have died due to COVID-19 complications.

The number of active cases is now 61. That’s the lowest that number has been since it was 61 on April 26.

Currently, the active cases are in the far north (46), Saskatoon (seven), the north (five), Regina (two) and the south (one). The central region doesn’t have any active cases.

There are four people in hospital, including three in intensive care in Saskatoon. One person is receiving inpatient care in Regina.

The 751 tests done Wednesday represented the highest single-day total since May 16, when 864 tests were performed. The provincial total now stands at 45,869.

Sick leave

This week the Prime Minister said he will be pushing the provinces on allowing workers 10 days of sick leave in a bid to stop or slow the possibility of a second wave of COVID-19.

Moe said Thursday that he would have a few conditions he’d want to put on that. First, he said there can’t be any cost to business.

“Businesses have borne a tremendous expense over the last couple of months and there can be no cost to the businesses that are just trying now to dust themselves off and reopen and get back into the marketplace.”

He said that would include ongoing costs like increases to EI rates in the future.

Moe said it’s a federal initiative so it should be funded by the federal government.

“All too often we’ve seen a number of these programs that have come out without provincial or territorial consultation – albeit that is getting better as we go through the weeks – where the program is announced and the province is required to administer it or to participate financially,” said Moe.

The premier also said the program should have an end date. He said that this kind of thing is better discussed in collective bargaining, and if a program is put in then it shouldn’t distort the marketplace.

Support for caregivers

Also Thursday, the province announced $1.125 million in financial support during the pandemic for the 2,800 caregivers of people with intellectual disabilities.

The caregivers are eligible to receive $100 per month from June to September to pay for respite or respite activities.

“Many respite options, including summer camps, have been closed during the pandemic to ensure the health and safety of staff and clients,” the government said in a release.

“This funding allows caregivers to access broader respite options that work in a person-centred or family-focused way during the current situation in Saskatchewan.”

The payments are available to: Families caring for adult Community Living Service Delivery clients in their homes; families receiving the Family Respite Benefit for children under the age of 18 with an intellectual disability; and Approved Private Service Home (APSH) proprietors, including Mental Health Approved Home proprietors.