As of Saturday, January 22, Canadians looking to cross the U.S. border by land or by ferry will need to be fully vaccinated and provide proof of vaccination to border patrol officers. This is following similar regulations for air travel into the United States put in place in early January.The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed the changes, which were first announced in October of last year, in a release issued on January 20.
Quebec released its first COVID-19 report since December 23 on Monday morning, showing 10 additional deaths and a total of 614 hospitalizations an increase of 141 since the last report.Of those people in the hospital due to COVID-19, 109 are in intensive care, up from 91 as of December 22.
Quebec s latest limitations on private gatherings took effect on December 26. While, until that date, as many as 10 people could participate in a private indoor gathering, Quebecers can now have a maximum of only six people in their homes if they re from more than two different households.
At a press conference on Thursday, Montreal s public health director, Dr. Mylène Drouin, outlined the current COVID-19 situation in the region. She named six areas that she said were "most affected" by the lastest wave in terms of new cases and positivity rate: Petite-Patrie, the Plateau-Mont-Royal, the Mile End, Villeray, downtown and Hochelaga.
As the first round of free rapid COVID-19 tests become available at Quebec pharmacies, it looks like residents are rushing to claim theirs. At least three pharmacy websites crashed Monday morning. Later, Jean Coutu s website posted a more than 11-hour wait for customers to access the page where they could reserve a test.After 10:00 a.m., the wait was down to seven hours.The Quebec government plans to gradually make the tests available at over 1,900 pharmacies across the province beginning the week of December 20.