It seems there is no end to it. What started in 2020 is still happening. COVID-19 is still impacting our day-to-day lives, and new restrictions are still being implemented. Now, new restrictions have to be followed by shoppers in Quebec who prefer to shop at a store rather than online. Here’s what’s changing.
Proof of
Vaccination at Major Stores
According to the
new guidelines, proof of vaccination will be required to enter big-box
stores like Walmart and Costco with a surface area of over 1,500 square
meters. Grocery stores and pharmacies are exempted from the new restriction.
The Quebec
government has clarified that it put this measure to reduce the spread of the
Omicron variant.
On January 13, Premier
François Legault stated that a person would need to have two doses of
vaccination before entering a large establishment. It will change to three
doses with time.
The Worry
The Retail
Council of Canada stated that it worries that checking vaccination passports
might be another blow for businesses already dealing with labor shortages. Michel
Rochette, the President of the RCC, stated, “The real challenge today is to
manage the public reaction because there will be longer lineups in front of
some stores that offer essential products.”
The Hope
About ten days
back, Premier Legault expressed hope that they would be able to reopen
restaurants, theatres, cinemas, and more in the next few weeks. Concert halls,
movie theatres, dining rooms, and sports facilities are all closed as of now.
He also stated
that the government is considering imposing a fine on people who refuse to be
vaccinated and have no medical reason for doing so. He stated that there would
be a debate in the National Assembly in this regard before a decision was made.
The bill regarding it might be tabled as early as February.
COVID Cases
About 52 more
COVID-19 deaths were reported, stated the province. On Monday, 2,807 new cases
were reported, but this tally cannot capture the scope of the virus spread as
PCR testing is limited only to specific high-risk groups.
On the East
Coast, Labrador and Newfoundland hit a new high when 21 people were
hospitalized due to COVID-19. The province reported 349 new cases this Monday,
and 31st COVID-related death was also confirmed.
In New
Brunswick, three more deaths linked to COVID-19 were announced, and 131
patients were hospitalized due to the disease. About 12 of them were in
intensive care.
One COVID-19
related death was also reported at Prince Edward Island by the chief medical
officer. In an official statement, Dr. Heather Morrison said that the
individual who lost their life was in their 80s. Two hundred nine new cases of
COVID-19 were also reported, which brought the active case count to 2,484 cases.
Over the last week,
279 (average) cases were reported daily, and nine people were recovering in
hospital, out of which one was in intensive care. The island recorded 6,125
cases of the disease since the pandemic was declared in March 2020. Get the
updated data on COVID cases in Quebec here.
Sources:
https://montreal.ctvnews.ca/covid-19-vaccine-passports-now-required-to-enter-big-box-stores-in-quebec-1.5751872
https://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/quebec-businesses-open-again-on-sundays-as-new-vaccine-requirement-looms
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-proof-of-covid-19-vaccination-now-required-to-access-more-quebec/