Is this measure worth revisiting?

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This article was published 10/12/2020 (2109 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

“My question, or more of a plea, for Dr. Roussin is on the subject of backyard gatherings for five people or less. Please reconsider — even for a two-three day window over Christmas and allow families to gather safely together in the privacy of a backyard, socially distanced with family members of five or less. The majority of Manitobans are following the rules. We understand why these rules are in place, but please give us this.”

— A reader question sent to the Sun on Wednesday

 

One of the benefits of being on the daily COVID-19 conference calls with Dr. Brent Roussin and Premier Brian Pallister — or more rarely, his ministers — is the Sun’s ability to bring forward questions from our readers that have either not been fully addressed by the government in its updates and announcements, or to bring something important to their immediate attention.

Only a few short weeks ago, the Sun began bringing reader questions forward, when time allows, as a means to better engage with our community and give individuals access to officials they would not ordinarily have.

Though not all will be directly asked of the government leadership directly as reporters are generally limited to a few questions, we do try to get answers from government spokespeople or look for information that may already be available that could answer that question. And many of the questions put forward have been thoughtful and insightful.

But in recent days, in the lead-up to the holidays, I have seen questions from people who are concerned with being able to spend a few hours on Christmas Day with their friends or families — even a small number of them. Much like the person quoted above, there is a growing plea from Manitobans for the province to cut them some slack for the Christmas holidays.

Let’s face it — we’re all weary of code red restrictions and COVID-19 and the feelings of fear, anxiety or anger that come hand-in-hand with them. But there is a growing sense in the public that some of these restrictions seem both unreasonable and illogical, and that we might look for other solutions to the need for isolation.

A woman who lives alone in Winnipeg, Rachel Kemp, told CBC she will be unable to enjoy Christmas with her aging and lonely grandparents this year because of Manitoba’s restrictions. She thinks the public health order that allows people who live alone to have one visitor could be more relaxed.

“Maybe open it up to have a couple more people because they are allowing people [to] go in Walmart, you can go shopping. We’re still getting access to other people,” she told CBC.

When a Sun reporter asked Dr. Roussin about this measure, he said that the province is under “black-and-white orders” and that there has to be a line drawn somewhere.

“So right now, the orders are … if a person lives alone, they can designate one person to come spend time with them. Not two, but one. But it’s also the reciprocal of that that they can then visit that person in their household as well,” Dr. Roussin said. “What we are advising is to socialize only with people in your household.

“People who live alone who want to ensure that they do have the ability of face time with other people. But all of this comes with some risk. The more contacts you have, the more risk there is.”

In British Columbia, however, they have come up with a slightly different solution. As in Manitoba, B.C. recently extended its own stringent COVID-19 measures to Jan. 8, 2021. B.C.’s restrictions prohibit gatherings and events as well as meetings with people outside of a person’s immediate household.

Further, B.C. this week allowed residents to have some drive-through, drive-in and drop-off events with COVID safety plans permitting up to 50 people who must stay inside their vehicles.

Also like Manitoba, B.C.’s extended measures prevent multi-household Christmas dinners, Hanukkah celebrations or New Year’s Eve gatherings. However, people who live alone in B.C. “may form a bubble with another unit,” a slight but perhaps important divergence from Manitoba’s own restrictions.

Findings of a recent poll by the Angus Reid Institute and Cardus suggest that 20 per cent of Manitobans plan to meet with friends and family regardless of the present code red restrictions, and a further five per cent say they plan to travel outside of their communities to celebrate the holidays. While that is significantly smaller than in previous years, no doubt Dr. Roussin would say this is far too high.

Though Alberta has surpassed Manitoba as having the highest rate of new COVID-19 infections in the country, we are still ranked second, per capita. Thus there are good reasons to keep the restrictions in place — we certainly don’t dispute that fact, and we continue to urge Manitobans to follow the regulations in place for the good of our friends, relatives and neighbours.

But it must be stated that even under the best of conditions, December holidays present a real mental health risk to many Canadians. While Christmas is supposed to be a time for love, friendship and family, for all too many of us that is not the case. We should expect even more people to be similarly affected this holiday season, particularly those who live alone.

Based on the numbers, we have a difficult time disputing the need for continued restrictions. But perhaps this particular measure needs revisiting.

» Matt Goerzen, editor