‘All options on deck’ in trying to secure more testing methods: Moe

Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe says the province is trying to secure an antibody test that would show not just whether a patient has COVID-19, but also if they’ve contracted the illness and recovered.

Speaking on Gormley on Tuesday, Moe didn’t rule out trying to acquire the Cellex test, which is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration but not the Public Health Agency of Canada.

“It’s all options on deck. We are looking actively at every not only testing kit but every treatment, every opportunity for a potential vaccine,” Moe said.

Moe defended Health Canada, saying the agency is busy handling all sorts of approvals.

“We’ve seen that with some of the procurement we’ve done with other premiers on trying to manufacture some N95 masks (and) some personal protective equipment for all Canadians,” he said.

“We have found that Health Canada is very, very busy right now trying to approve every test, every new piece of (personal protective equipment), every idea that everyone has. Everyone’s trying to help and that’s a great thing but it has made for busy work.”

Increased testing is one of the conditions for the province to start lifting emergency restrictions imposed during the pandemic.

Moe said the province has ordered 25,000 rapid test kits from the company Spartan Bioscience and more will be coming. As well, 46,000 test kits will be allocated to Saskatchewan through federal procurement.

“We need to get our testing up if we’re going to be able to reopen our economy,” he said.

“We need to have the capacity at that point in time to test and vigorously test, should we have an outbreak in a regional setting, in a long-term care home, in a health-care facility or in a community.”

Should the province begin reopening parts of the economy, the premier was also asked about the idea of the federal government invoking the Emergencies Act to override the province.

Moe said it would be a “disappointment” if such a notion would happen, but didn’t sound worried.

“I doubt very much that the federal government would be so — could I say — foolish, if you would, to trump a provincial initiative,” he said.

“I don’t see that as a threat. But listen, if our numbers stay where they are, we are going to start reopening our economy here in the province and we are going to do it in a very methodical manner, where we will open up a sector of the economy and we will test and contact trace and watch our numbers.”

Oil and gas sector gets help

The provincial government announced measures Tuesday to help the province’s oil and gas sector, which has dealt with a downturn due to COVID-19 and the recent price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia.

The government: Extended deadlines for filings as companies’ employees continue to work from home; extended by one year mineral rights that were to expire in 2020; and, reduced the industry portion of the Oil and Gas Administrative Levy by 50 per cent and delaying billing of the remaining balance until Oct. 1.

It’s estimated that latter change will save companies $11.4 million so they can deal with what the government called “immediate liquidity challenges.”

“The Saskatchewan energy sector is the second-largest contributor to provincial GDP and, directly or indirectly, employs more than 34,000 people; so doing all we can to protect jobs is a major priority,” Energy and Resources Minister Bronwyn Eyre said in a media release.