1) Although Premier François Legault has announced lockdowns in Quebec City, Lévis and Gatineau, the variant-fueled #pandemic is now rising in nearly every region of the province, the latest government statistics show. In this thread, I will assess this turn for the worse.
2) As you can see from the chart below, #COVID19 cases have ramped up since Wednesday in 15 of Quebec’s 17 regions. Although the number of cases dipped by 21 in the Montérégie, they’re up by 30 overall since March 21.
3) Undeniably, #COVID19 is surging in the Capitale-Nationale, but cases have risen in the past three days in Montreal amid an increase in outbreaks in the workplace and in schools. As I wrote in yesterday’s thread, the situation in Montreal is definitely precarious.
4) The province on Thursday reported a total of 1,271 #COVID19 cases. The same day, the public health institute declared an increase of 625 variants. This suggests that nearly half of all new cases may come from the more contagious variants.
5) A variant case was confirmed for the first time in the Gaspésie-Iles-de-la-Madeleine, raising to 14 the total number of regions with the more transmissible #coronavirus strains. The Capitale-Nationale edged out Montreal with one more variant case. See below.
6) But look to Laval to observe that it’s recording the greatest number of variant cases per 100,000 residents, 164.1. At present 16.33% of Laval’s population has been partially vaccinated, compared with the provincial rate of 16.4% and Montreal’s rate of 22.06%.
7) Although #COVID19 hospitalizations dipped by six to 245 in Montreal, they’ve been going up in the Capitale-Nationale, especially at Hôpital de l’enfant-Jésus. Physicians in the region are concerned that the pace of hospital admissions is high.
8) Meanwhile, the number of #COVID19 outbreaks climbed for the 9th day in a row across the province. Clusters rose by 16 to 365 in the workplace, by four to 179 in schools and by two to 68 in health-care settings. The overall tally is 733, up from 550 on March 22.
9) Back to schools. The Education Ministry reported that #COVID19 exposure has forced schools to close 1,284 classes across the province. There are more than 2,800 active cases among students and staff, up by more than a thousand since the end of the March break.
10) Given these trends — and with the long Easter weekend ahead and the prospect of some family relatives getting together in violation of public health restrictions — it would not be surprising for the #pandemic to deteriorate sharply in some regions soon. End of thread.
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1) On Tuesday, the Quebec government unveiled its 2024-2025 budget, with the biggest expenditure to be made on health and social services. In this Twitter thread, I assess whether this "Health/Education Priorities" budget lives up to its hype, especially when it comes to seniors.
2) As you can see from the chart below, the lion's share of spending in the budget is for health and social services, pegged at $61.9 billion — up by 4.17% from the year before. In contrast, spending on education — so vital to Quebec's future — will rise 9.35% to $22.3 billion.
3) But as far as health and social services is concerned, Tuesday's budget may be indulging in a bit of spin. The chart below states that Quebec will spend an extra $3.7 billion over the next five years to "support a humane and effective organization of health care."
1) "The pandemic is far from over," one of the preeminent experts on #COVID19, Dr. Eric Topol, declared today, Jan. 4, 2024 — three years after the world first learned of a novel virus that was killing people in China. In this thread, I take stock of what's going on in Quebec.
2) "The pandemic is far from over, as evidenced by the rapid rise to global dominance of the JN.1 variant of SARS-CoV-2," Topol noted in a Los Angeles Times op-ed. In Quebec, nearly one in two genetic samples collected was from JN.1 as of two weeks ago. It's likely higher now.
3) "Clearly this virus variant, with its plethora of new mutations, has continued its evolution ... for infecting or reinfecting us," Topol added. Although the updated booster is considered 60% protective against hospitalization, only 17% of the Quebec population has taken it.
1) BREAKING: By every major indicator, Quebec's health-care system is now arguably the worst it's ever been. Please click on my story below on Quebec wait lists for cancer and other surgery setting record highs — again. via @mtlgazettemontrealgazette.com/news/local-new…
2) Although Quebec has made it a priority to tackle wait lists for cancer surgery, more than 4,400 oncology patients are still waiting for their operations. More than 600 are waiting longer than the medically acceptable delay of 57 days, potentially putting their health at risk.
3) Even the wait list for so-called non-urgent surgery has now swelled to nearly 164,000 people. Almost 14,000 Quebecers today have been waiting more than a year for their surgery. At a year's wait, a non-urgent surgery starts to become urgent.
1) BREAKING: Quebec, like other jurisdictions across North America, is now in the midst of a new #COVID19 resurgence — nearly 4 years into the #pandemic. In this thread, I will assess the implications of this latest wave of infections, likely driven by a new SARS-CoV-2 variant.
2) On Dec. 5, Quebec declared a total of 2,214 hospitalizations with and for #COVID. Please note this increase also reflects a change in the way Quebec's public health institute has been compiling such hospitalizations. But make no mistake: Quebec is still facing a resurgence.
3) The United States is also facing a #COVID hospitalizations resurgence, with 20,000 new admissions per week, according to preeminent expert @EricTopol. In the U.S., the JN.1 variant is becoming dominant, with wastewater levels surging with SARS-CoV-2. See Topol's tweet below.
1) BREAKING: Jewish-owned businesses in Montreal are being targeted and vandalized with antisemitic profanity. Please click below to read my report.
via @mtlgazettemontrealgazette.com/news/local-new…
2) "Last weekend, they put swastikas on the … menus downtown and they wrote FUCK THE JEWS," a Jewish business owner told me. I have also seen a list of Jewish businesses that is circulating, provoking not only boycotts but vandalism.
3) The Gazette has decided not to publish these disturbing images, as the Jewish business owners are fearful of reprisals.
1) BREAKING: A month after Japan downgraded #COVID19 to the seasonal flu, the country is now beset with a 9th wave of infections. In this thread, I will explore the persistence of the #pandemic that everyone — especially politicians — wants to forget.
2) First, it's worth noting that the number of #COVID hospitalizations in the nation of 125 million rose to 4,330 from 4,122 a week before. The seven-day average for the number of patients in intensive care units was 79, according to the Japan Times.
3) It appears that XBB subtypes of the SARS-CoV-2 virus are driving the latest wave of infections in Japan. Meanwhile, China has recorded a more than five-fold surge in the number of people diagnosed with COVID in hospitals since April. China is also bracing for another wave.