COVID-19 pandemic in Canada

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COVID-19 pandemic in Canada
(clockwise from top) The results of panic buying in Halifax, Nova Scotia Quebec police stop vehicles on the Macdonald-Cartier Bridge Mass-vaccination site at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal, Quebec The COVID Alert app developed by Shopify and Health Canada A sign encouraging social distancing in Nanaimo, British Columbia An empty Yonge–Dundas Square in Toronto
Disease	COVID-19
Virus strain	SARS-CoV-2
Location	Canada
First outbreak	Wuhan, Hubei, China
Index case	Toronto, Ontario
Arrival date	January 25, 2020[1] (4 years and 3 months)
Confirmed cases	4,915,977 (as of January 26, 2024) * It is estimated that most cases have gone unreported and that at least 75% of people in Canada were infected with at least one of the COVID-19 variants at some point.[2]
Deaths	57,905
Fatality rate	1.18%
Vaccinations	Vaccinated: 32,320,750 (83.00%):[3] - One dose only: 137,295 (0.35%) - Two doses only: 12,868,886 (33.05%) - Three doses only: 13,746,054 (35.30%) - Four doses: 5,568,515 (14.30%) Non-vaccinated: 6,619,913 (17.00%) * On November 12, 2022, the Government of Canada transitioned to a new system of collecting data on vaccinated persons. This data is much less detailed and no overview exists that would provide a clear picture of how many persons have had one, two, three, or four doses (or more), so this data will no longer be updated.
Government website
canada.ca/coronavirus

The COVID-19 pandemic in Canada is part of the ongoing worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). It is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Most cases over the course of the pandemic have been in Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia and Alberta. Confirmed cases have been reported in all of Canada's provinces and territories.^[4][5]

The virus was confirmed to have reached Canada on January 25, 2020, after an individual who had returned to Toronto from Wuhan, Hubei, China, tested positive. The first case of community transmission in Canada was confirmed in British Columbia on March 5.^[6] In March 2020, as cases of community transmission were confirmed, all of Canada's provinces and territories declared states of emergency. Provinces and territories implemented, to varying degrees, school and daycare closures, prohibitions on gatherings, closures of non-essential businesses and restrictions on entry. Canada severely restricted its border access, barring travelers from all countries with some exceptions. The federal Minister of Health invoked the Quarantine Act, introduced following the 2002–2004 SARS outbreak.^[7] For the first time in its legislative history, the act was used, legally requiring all travelers (excluding essential workers) returning to the country to self-isolate for 14 days, until rules were changed to accommodate fully vaccinated travelers. Between July and November, the four Atlantic provinces

By mid to late summer of 2020, the country saw a steady decline in active cases until the beginning of late summer. In July, the four Atlantic provinces formed the Atlantic Bubble, which allowed unrestricted movement for provincial residents. Through autumn, there was a resurgence of cases in all provinces and territories.^[8] On September 23, 2020, Prime Minister Trudeau declared that Canada was experiencing a "second wave" of the virus.^[9] New restrictions from provincial governments were put in place once again as cases increased, including variations of regional lockdowns. In late November, the Atlantic Bubble was disbanded because of the second wave. The federal government passed legislation to approve further modified economic aid for businesses and individuals.^[10]

Nation-wide cases, hospitalizations and deaths spiked during and after the Christmas and holiday season in December, 2020 and January, 2021. Alarmed by hospital capacity issues, fatalities and new cases, heavy restrictions (such as lockdowns and curfews) were put in place in affected areas (primarily Ontario, Quebec, and Alberta) and across the country. These lockdowns caused active cases to steadily decline, reaching a plateau in active cases in mid-February 2021. During a third wave of the virus, cases began rising across most provinces west of Atlantic Canada in mid-March,^[11] prompting further lockdowns and restrictions in the most populous provinces of Ontario and Quebec.^[11][12] Due to a relatively low volume of cases in the Atlantic provinces, the travel-restricted Atlantic Bubble was planned to reopen;^[13] however, in late April, the third wave had spread to the Atlantic provinces. In response, Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia reinstated travel bans toward the rest of the country.

Following Health Canada's approval of the Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, and later the mRNA-1273 vaccine developed by Moderna, mass vaccinations began nationwide on December 14, 2020.^[14][15] On February 26, 2021, Health Canada approved the Oxford–AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine for use,^[16] and on March 5, 2021, they additionally approved the Janssen COVID-19 vaccine for a total of four approved vaccines in the nation.^[17] However, most provinces discontinued first doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca by May 12, 2021,^[18] while the administration of the Janssen vaccine was determined unnecessary.^[19] Canada became one of the most vaccinated countries in the world, with a continually high uptake of the vaccine.^[20] Despite high general uptake of the vaccine, cases began to surge particularly amongst the unvaccinated population in provinces like Alberta, which had removed nearly all pandemic restrictions.^{[citation needed]}

Near the end of summer 2021, cases began to surge across Canada, notably in the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Quebec and Ontario, particularly amongst the unvaccinated population. During this fourth wave of the virus, return to pandemic restrictions such as mask mandates were reinstated in provinces like British Columbia and Alberta.^[21] The surge in cases was largely deemed to be a "pandemic of the unvaccinated"^[22] and resulted in the introduction of vaccine passports, for all provinces and two of the territories.^[23][24] Federally, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau instated requirements for vaccination in order to partake in air travel, as well as those who ride Via Rail and Rocky Mountaineer trains as of October 30, 2021. Additionally, the mandate included any federally regulated workers.^[25][26] In January 2022, all of Canada's provinces and territories were experiencing record-level case numbers, primarily driven by the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, which caused provincial and territorial governments to reintroduce restrictions surrounding travel and isolation. However, in mid-February active caseloads and hospitalizations began to decrease and towards the end of February 2022, almost all provinces and territories had announced plans to lift restrictions by early March or mid-March 2022, if epidemiology remained favorable.^[27]

Background and epidemiology

On January 12, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed that a novel coronavirus was the cause of a respiratory illness in a cluster of people in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China, reported to the WHO on December 31, 2019.^[28][29]

The case fatality ratio for COVID-19 was much lower than SARS of 2003,^[30][31] but the transmission was significantly greater, with a significant death toll.^[32][30]

COVID-19 pandemic in Canada by province and territory, 24 April 2024, 19:43 UTC ( v t e )
Province	Population	Tests	Per k	Cases	Per m	Deaths	Per m	Ref.
British Columbia	5,654,251	6,618,729	1,170.6	419,794	74,246	6,929	1,225.5	[33]
Alberta	4,867,185	7,669,738	1,575.9	653,101	134,190	6,381	1,311.1	[34]
Saskatchewan	1,233,189	1,856,037	1,505.1	166,560	135,067	2,054	1,665.6	[35]
Manitoba	1,488,537	1,742,185	1,170.4	162,256	109,006	2,713	1,822.6	[36]
Ontario	16,041,554	27,709,096	1,727.4	1,713,979	106,850	18,584	1,158.5	[37]
Quebec	9,046,396	20,718,584	2,290.3	1,454,916	160,832	20,023	2,213.4	[38]
New Brunswick	852,224	1,083,238	1,271.1	95,003	111,479	1,029	1,207.5	[39]
Prince Edward Island	177,176	343,941	1,941.3	58,549	330,468	124	700	[40]
Nova Scotia	1,078,808	2,209,676	2,048.3	154,517	143,233	1,073	994.6	[41]
Newfoundland and Labrador	542,102	773,489	1,426.8	59,710	110,147	406	748.9	[42]
Yukon	45,779	38,235	835.2	5,242	114,509	45	983	[43]
Northwest Territories	44,536	44,200	992.5	11,817	265,336	25	561.3	[44]
Nunavut	40,415	51,895	1,284	4,685	115,917	10	247.4	[45]
Repatriated travellers	N/A	N/A	N/A	13	N/A	0	N/A	[46]
Canada	41,112,152	70,859,043	1,723.6	4,960,142	120,652	59,396	1,444.8

Preparations

On January 1, 2020, the WHO set up the IMST (Incident Management Support Team) across all three levels of the organization: headquarters, regional headquarters and country-level, putting the organization on an emergency footing for dealing with the outbreak.^[47]

On January 7, when it appeared that there was a health crisis emerging in Wuhan, Public Health Canada advised travelers to China to avoid contact with animals, noting that they were very carefully monitoring the situation. Still there was no evidence of what caused the illness, or how it spread.^[48]

On January 15, the federal government activated its Emergency Operations Centre.^[49]

On January 17, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) indicated plans were in progress "to implement signage" in the Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver airports to raise awareness of the virus. An additional health screening question added to the electronic kiosks for passengers arriving from central China. The agency noted the overall risk to Canadians was low, and there were no direct flights from Wuhan to Canada. The CBSA said it would not be, at that time, implementing extra screening measures, but would "monitor the situation closely".^[50][51]

On January 23, the federal Minister of Health, Patty Hajdu, said they were monitoring five or six people for signs of the virus.^[52][53] That same day, the chief public health officer of Canada, Theresa Tam, was a member of the WHO committee that broadcast that it was too early to declare a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.

Initially, Canada faced a shortage of personal protective equipment, as the Trudeau government had reduced PPE funding as a cost-cutting measure in previous years.^[54][55]

Timeline of outbreak in Canada