The federal government is now requesting assistance from other provinces in their battle against the COVID-19 virus.
Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic Leblanc says the situation in Ontario is concerning to all Canadians.
Prime Minister Trudeau and Minister Leblanc have spoken with several Premiers in recent days, “In the last 48 hours, the Prime Minister has spokes with Premier Furey of Newfoundland and Labrador, Premier King of Prince Edward Island and Premier Rankin of Nova Scotia. They are all working hard to mobilize what additional healthcare staff might be possible to help the province of Ontario. I have also spoken to Premier Higgs of New Brunswick, Premier Silver of Yukon and Premier Cochrane of the Northwest Territories. They are also looking at what might be possible to send to Ontario as well.”
Leblanc also said the the government will cover the cost and coordinate the movement of healthcare staff from other provinces to the frontlines in Ontario.
This includes including using military aircraft to help bring healthcare workers to Ontario.
“The Premiers right across the country are obviously concerned what is happening in Ontario and the conversations have been along the lines of what we can do collectively to help,” Leblanc says.
Additionally, Leblanc says the federal government will also boost rapid testing to help stop the spread of the virus, and work with municipalities and businesses to deploy them to hot spots across Ontario, support contact tracing and isolation, and make workplaces safer.
He also announced the federal government will invest $84.2 million to support voluntary safe isolation sites, including across Ontario.
These sites have already helped 3,900 Ontarians isolate safely to prevent the spread of the virus.
Ontario reported over 4400 COVID-19 cases on Monday.
Meantime, a spokesperson for Premier Blaine Higgs says conversations are underway with Ottawa about sharing resources but any decision would be contingent upon ensuring New Brunswickers are kept safe.
Nicolle Carlin says decision will be made by the all-party cabinet committee on COVID-19 and by cabinet with input from the health authorities.
She adds any human resources that could potentially be shared would also be based upon medical professionals in our province volunteering to assist in another province.
Prince Edward Island premier Dennis King says his office has reached out to the University of Prince Edward Island and Holland College to see if pending graduates may be willing to help.
King stresses that his first priority is the health and safety of Islanders.
