All The Things: Border restrictions and increased social distancing
Canadians abroad are told to come home, and Trump admits there's a problem
It feels like in North America and Europe, we all will have a day of March 2020 that we will look back on in the coming weeks and months as the day things stopped being normal. Today was that day for me, I suspect, with the announcement of the closure of schools, additional restrictions on businesses and organizations, and my job’s likely move to remote working.
A lot of things happened today, which seems to be the case every day right now. I will try to keep it concise but thorough.
Canada
Canada’s top health official is making it clear that the country’s time to act on COVID-19 is now, and our window to reduce community transmission is narrow. Governments across the country, at all levels, took further actions in that direction including advising bars and restaurants to close and shutting more services like libraries and schools.
The federal government announced that entry to Canada would, in most cases, be restricted to citizens and permanent residents. The number of airports accepting international flights is dropping to four, and airlines are restricting flights overall. The result of these changes was a mass scramble to get back to the country that led to crowding and confusion at airports. Snowbirds who are spending the winter in places like Florida or Arizona are trying to get back to Canada before their health insurance expires.
If you or a loved one is sick and you aren’t sure what you should do, this online assessment is helpful (and worth bookmarking). It is designed for here in Newfoundland and Labrador but it seems like it could be valuable in general.
Everything is stressful right now. Talk to people, even if you can’t do it in person. Give yourself breaks from the news. Enjoy little treats. And remember that the worst does not have to come to pass. There are things we can do. We have some control.
And if you’re having trouble sorting reality from panic right now, pay attention to Jane Lytvynenko’s Twitter feed. Nobody in Canada is better at sorting through misinformation, scams, and outright lies.
But the concerns are real too. In Indigenous communities across the country, for example, there are worries that a lack of running water, overcrowding, and isolation from medical care will make any virus outbreaks even worse than they would be elsewhere. MP Charlie Angus has called for a better federal response to help Indigenous communities and MP Niki Ashton pointed out that plans to use tents as small clinics in some remote areas isn’t feasible at this time of year.
Several jurisdictions are advising restaurants and bars to limit customers, move to take-out/delivery only, or close entirely. But many remain open and for their employees, who often lack worker protections and depend on tips for a significant chunk of their income, hard decisions have to be made. It’s almost like some kind of oh, I don’t know, basic amount of income provided to every person might be helpful?! Just spitballing.
The U.S.
After significant criticism for contradictory or incorrect statements and downplaying of the seriousness of the country’s COVID-19 outbreak, President Donald Trump changed his tune somewhat on Monday, saying that the outbreak was bad and could lead to recession.
New York City brought in significant new measures to ensure social distancing, though reports are that they came after great resistance from the city’s mayor, Bill De Blasio.
The new measures in NYC include closing schools, which has already happened in jurisdictions across the U.S. and Canada. The result is an unprecedented move to online education — not the carefully designed online education used for courses that are meant to be delivered remotely from the start, in many cases, but offerings that vary widely in style, sophistication, and access.
In San Francisco and the surrounding area, a widespread “shelter in place” order has come into effect. Residents have been asked to stay indoors, away from others, as much as possible over the next three weeks. Businesses are closing, as many people as possible are working from home, and everyone is being asked to go out as little as possible.
There is one entity benefitting from all of this: Amazon. The company is looking to hire another 100,000 warehouse and delivery workers in order to keep up with the demand for orders from people trying to avoid leaving the house. Those workers will get a temporary $2/hour raise, but Amazon warehouse jobs are notoriously difficult.
And here’s where I mention paid sick leave again! Amazon has promised employees can have it, but many, many other businesses operating in the U.S. and Canada do not provide it to the majority of their employees. They should!
One thing some people have been trying to order via Amazon is face masks, despite the directives not to hoard them. This look at the rush for one American mask maker to ramp up production highlights the downside of relying on other countries to make medical supplies.
How long is all this isolation going to last? Nobody knows, unfortunately. It all depends on when cases reach their peak. That could take half a month, as it did in South Korea. It could take two months, as it did in China. As frustrating as that is, right now we just don’t know.
Amidst all this, deportations are still happening and immigration hearings are going ahead. There are concerns among observers, reporters, and migrants about the potential for coronavirus spread in crowded detention camps, border crossings, and courtrooms.
Europe
The response to coronavirus in the UK has remained limited compared to some other countries in Europe, with only seven-day self-isolation recommended and few restrictions in place on wider society. Now it appears the government is realizing that they did not act strongly enough, quickly enough. A new report predicted there could be as many as 250,000 deaths from COVID-19 under current protocols and the government announced significant new restrictions Monday.
French President Emmanuel Macron announced significant restrictions for his own country — in addition to previous shutdowns of bars, restaurants, and schools — as cases and deaths continued to rise in the country. The new restrictions came after Parisians posted themselves enjoying the city’s parks with the hashtag #irresponsables. Félicitations, vous vous êtes joué.
As Italian hospitals struggle to keep up with the demand for ventilators, 3D printers are filling some of the need after the valves were reverse engineered. The news continues to be terrible in Italy, where some morgues are overwhelmed. Three hundred people died on Monday alone.
Elsewhere
If you’d like a good/frightening visual of how COVID-19 cases can quickly explode, these Reuters graphics showing how just one patient — Patient 31 — led to a swift increase in cases.
However, things are now improving in South Korea. Widespread testing has been credited with some of that progress, and the country’s experience with MERS a few years ago allowed them to scale up testing for the coronavirus virus. Legal measures and social restrictions also played a role.
The situation is also improving in China, where new cases have declined significantly and many infected people have now recovered. Now concern has shifted to the arrival of infected people from the other parts of the world.
In Turkey, cafes, sports venues, and entertainment venues are being temporarily closed in an effort to slow the spread of the virus. Thailand is closing bars and schools and stopping cockfights.
Brazil’s president is supposed to be in quarantine after one of his aides tested positive for coronavirus, but Jair Bolsonaro shook hands and took photos with supporters in the streets on Sunday.
And in Mexico, many things are continuing as before: this weekend, soccer games and concerts were held. But some have criticized the country’s approach to COVID-19 so far as insufficient.