TORONTO (AP) – Air travelers to Canada will be quarantined at a hotel from February 22 awaiting the result of a coronavirus test, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday.
Trudeau previously announced that stricter restrictions would be imposed on non-essential air travelers in response to new, likely more contagious, variants.
Government officials have confirmed that – with few exceptions – non-essential air travelers must book a three-night stay at a government-authorized hotel at their own expense before departing for Canada,
Those crossing the US border by land will not need to isolate in a hotel, but will be required to show a negative test within three days of arrival and both on arrival and towards the end of a 14-day quarantine at home or elsewhere.
Public Security Secretary Bill Blair said less than 5% of those crossing the land border are not essential, one reason why hotel stays are not required for those entering by land.
The measures mainly affect Canadian “hibernators” who hibernate abroad and return home in the spring.
Health Minister Patty Hajdu said vaccinated Canadians will not be exempt because research is still not clear if the vaccinated can still pass the virus to others.
Some Canadian “hibernators” are vaccinated in Florida and Arizona.
Trudeau said it could take up to three days for test results to be available and he previously said the cost of a hotel stay for air travelers could be $ 2,000 Canadian (US $ 1,576). The high cost of hotel accommodation includes the cost of security, food, and measures that hotels must take to protect their employees.
Travelers would then isolate at home or elsewhere if the test is negative. Canada already requires those entering the country to isolate themselves for 14 days and prohibits non-essential travel to the country.
The Canadian Snowbird Association has said that the cost of hotel accommodation poses financial difficulties for many and that travelers who test negative should be able to quarantine their homes.
Some winter visitors fly back before a hotel stay is mandatory. Dr. Morley Rubinoff, 71, said he left his apartment in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, about six weeks earlier this year to avoid what he called “ hotel hell. ” The semi-retired dental specialist said he arrived in Mexico on Dec. 31 and planned to stay until mid-March before returning to Toronto.
Chief Public Health Officer Theresa Tam said on Friday there have been more than 429 cases of a variant of concern first identified in the UK, and 28 cases of the variant first identified in South Africa in eight provinces. So far, there has been only one report of the variant first encountered in Brazil.
Although Canada has contracted many more vaccines than it needs to cover the population, they were slow to arrive, frustrating many who see a faster rollout in the contiguous US.
Canadian officials have said Trudeau spoke with US President Joe Biden about the possibility of getting Pfizer vaccines from a factory in nearby Michigan, the first 100 million doses of which have already been contracted by the US government.
“I think the president has been publicly and certainly privately clear when the talk came, that his focus is now on ensuring the American people are vaccinated,” said White House press secretary Jen Psaki when he went to see him Friday. Canada was asked.
Canada, which has no domestic production, has contracts for vaccines from Europe and elsewhere.
Trudeau said he had spoken with CEO Pfizer and said he confirmed that Canada will receive 4 million doses from that company by the end of March, as well as 10.8 million doses in April, May and June – more than previously announced.
Trudeau also said Canada is buying an additional 4 million Moderna vaccines and is looking into the possibility of getting vaccines from India.