Shoppers Drug Mart gauging interest in providing rapid COVID-19 testing to businesses

David MolkoSenior Reporter, CTV News Vancouver
@molkoreports Contact
Published Wednesday, December 16, 2020 1:35PM PST

VANCOUVER -- Pharmacy giant Shoppers Drug Mart has reached out to Canadian businesses to gauge interest in a COVID-19 rapid testing program that could launch as soon as January 2021.

The program, which the company’s “Health Solutions by Shoppers” division is exploring, is being pitched as a way for companies to bring employees back to work safely, according to a digital presentation slide obtained by CTV News Vancouver.

The slide, which says the program would be funded by employers with a minimum of a one-month commitment, promises COVID-19 results in 15 minutes, with positive results to be followed-up with PCR (laboratory) testing.

It indicates that Shoppers is considering using the Abbott COVID-19 Panbio Antigen test for the program, which Health Canada approved for use in October.

At the time, Ottawa signed a deal to obtain more than 20 million of the so-called “point-of-care” tests.

Catherine Thomas, senior director of external communications with parent company Loblaws, declined a CTV News request for an interview because, she said, the program is “not live.”

“Our health solutions team has been reaching out to some of our business partners to gauge their interest to understand if a program like this would be relevant to a broader group,” Thomas wrote in an email.

Thomas also explained the initial outreach was to a “few companies” and “at this point B.C. is not an area of focus.”

Infectious disease expert Dr. Brian Conway called the antigen test “very useful” and a “powerful tool to help us in the public health response,” indicating a similar test had been used as part of the NHL bubble.

Conway, who is the medical director of the Vancouver Infectious Diseases Centre, said the antigen test is analogous to the “gold-standard” PCR tests currently being performed in British Columbia, but doesn’t require a lab to process.

But, Conway cautioned, the rapid test appears to be less “sensitive,” meaning in people who don’t have symptoms but have COVID-19, the test may only detect the infection about 70 per cent of the time.

Conway said the rapid test could be useful for employers to quickly track chains of transmission and isolate individuals, once an individual has tested positive by standard lab testing, but that he would not recommend companies use it as a health-screening tool.

Conway also pointed out that the results of any point-of-care test would need to be used wisely.

“The danger of using this test more widely, especially in people who have no symptoms, is that it will be taken as a license to not follow current public health recommendations,” Conway said.

He added that everyone should continue to follow all public health guidelines until at least a majority of people have received a COVID-19 vaccine.

According to the manufacturer, Abbott, the test requires a nasal or nasopharyngeal swab, and a self-contained tube with a “break off” swab minimizes exposure risks.

Results appear in the form of lines on the display panel of a single-use cartridge within 15 minutes.  

Snowfall, wind warnings issued for parts of central B.C

Up 25 cm of snow expected, while central and north coasts are in line for 90 km/h winds

CBC News · Posted: Dec 16, 2019 10:20 AM PT | Last Updated: 2 hours ago

Environment Canada issued winter storm warnings for parts of B.C. on Dec. 12, 2019. (Jonathan Hayward/Canadian Press)

A hefty dump of snow is on the way for parts of B.C.'s central Interior, while winds reaching 90 km/h are expected for the province's central and north coast, Environment Canada says.

Inland areas of the north coast will see the heaviest snow beginning Monday morning — with the area around Stewart in line for up to 25 centimetres by early Tuesday — while freezing rain is also expected in Kitimat and toward the Terrace area.

Environment Canada is warning of hazardous driving conditions in those areas.

Up to 20 centimetres of snowfall is also expected for the central Interior, including Prince George, beginning Monday morning and ending Tuesday morning.

The warm front and associated low-pressure system bringing the snow is also set to batter the coast and Haida Gwaii with strong winds starting Monday evening, Environment Canada says.

"Winds will rise this evening as the warm front nears and then reach 90 km/h late this evening ahead of the low pressure centre," said a statement from Environment Canada.

The winds are expected to ease overnight.

Metro Vancouver SkyTrain workers issue 72-hour strike notice

BY SIMON LITTLE GLOBAL NEWS

Posted December 6, 2019 12:18 pm

Updated December 6, 2019 1:15 pm

Click here to watch video: Breaking: The union representing 900 SkyTrain workers has issued a 72-hour strike notice.

The union representing 900 Metro Vancouver SkyTrain workers has issued 72-hour strike notice.

CUPE Local 7000 says after four days of mediation with TransLink’s BC Rapid Transit Company (BCRTC) “no significant progress was made on the key issues.”

“We are still committed to reaching an agreement at the table, and our committee will make itself available day and night, over the weekend, to reach a fair deal without any interruption of service,” said CUPE 7000 President Tony Rebelo in a statement.

READ MORE: Metro Vancouver transit workers approve new contract deal, officially ending job dispute

“We will need to work very hard to reach a deal that addresses our concerns about wages, forced overtime, staffing levels and trades adjustment language, among other issues.”

In a statement, BCRTC president Michel Ladrak said the union has not told the employer what form job action would take.

“While we are disappointed by this development, BCRTC and CUPE will continue bargaining throughout the weekend,” said Ladrak.

“We are hopeful and committed to reaching a fair deal without disrupting the valuable service we provide to the region.”

CUPE 7000 confirmed that despite the strike notice, bargaining is ongoing.

It says it will issue an update on its planned job action Saturday at 11 a.m.

The union, which has been without a contract since the end of August, held a strike vote on Nov. 21, where members gave the leadership a 96.8 per cent strike mandate.

Any job action would not affect the Canada Line, which is operated independently of the SkyTrain system.

READ MORE: SkyTrain workers union, TransLink staying silent amid mediated contract talks

The strike notice comes just one day after Unifor, the union representing 5,000 bus, SeaBus and maintenance workers, ratified a new contract with the Coast Mountain Bus Company.

That deal gave a workers retroactive two per cent pay bump for work dating back from Dec. 5, 2019 to April 1, 2020.

Drivers will then get a one per cent raise for work up until April 1, 2020, while maintenance workers will see their pay rise by $1.95 per hour to achieve parity with SkyTrain maintenance workers.

After that, operators will see a three per cent raise in each of the next two years. Maintenance workers will earn two per cent raises each of those years, also achieving parity with SkyTrain.

The deal between Unifor and the Coast Mountain Bus Company came at the 11th hour, after three weeks of job action by workers and 30 minutes after a deadline that could have seen workers walk off the job for three days, paralyzing the Metro Vancouver transit system.

Emergency alert test: When to expect it in B.C., and what to do if you don't get it

Kendra MangioneCTVNewsVancouver.ca producer

Published Wednesday, November 27, 2019 8:35AM PST

VANCOUVER -- Six months after the last test, B.C. cellphones, TV stations and radio stations will issue emergency alert messages on Wednesday.

Testing of the emergency system will be conducted across Canada throughout the day. In B.C., the test is scheduled for 1:55 p.m.

The message sent in May read, "EMERGENCY ALERT" in bold, capital letters.

"This is a TEST of the British Columbia Emergency Alerting System, issued by Emergency Management British Columbia. This is ONLY a TEST. If this had been an actual emergency or threat, you would now hear instructions that would assist you to protect you and your family."

The pop-up directed those who got the message to visit the EmergencyInfoBC website for more information.

A message posted on the site this week said the Alert Ready system, which allows officials to issue public safety warnings, only works on smartphones connected to an LTE or 4G network.

Phones must be compatible with wireless public alerting, have up-to-date software and be within the emergency alert area.

The Alert Ready website has a feature that helps cellphone users check their phone's compatibility. Those who have a compatible device but don't get the alert Wednesday are asked to contact their service provider.

It is not known how many phones are actually getting the alerts, The Canadian Press reported in the spring.

The federal government said it can't measure how many were received, but that "the confirmation in each jurisdiction indicates it was successfully distributed."

The system has been under scrutiny, especially in June when a tornado tore through parts of Ottawa and no warnings were sent.

But the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission says 125 real warnings have been issued through the system since January, and credits the alerts with saving lives.
 

Timing of alerts (in local time zone)

• Newfoundland and Labrador: 10:55 a.m.

• New Brunswick: 10:55 a.m.

• Prince Edward Island: 12:55 p.m.:

• Nova Scotia: 1:55 p.m.

• Quebec: 1:55 p.m.

• Ontario: 2:55 p.m.

• Northwest Territories: 9:55 a.m.

• Manitoba and Saskatchewan: 1:55 p.m.

• Alberta: 1:55 p.m.

• B.C. and Yukon: 1:55 p.m.

There is no test in Nunavut.

Police to double number of CCTV cameras in Toronto amid spike in shootings

Number of CCTV cameras will jump from 34 to 74 within 3 years, city says

CBC News · Posted: Aug 23, 2019 9:12 AM ET | Last Updated: August 23

The province committed $3 million on Friday to help Toronto police more than double the number of closed-circuit television cameras in the city in an effort to deter gun violence amid a recent spike in gang-related shootings.

The 40 new cameras will be installed over a three-year period, bringing the total number of CCTV cameras operating in Toronto from 34 to 74.

• Toronto police beefing up guns and gangs unit in effort to curb shootings, sources say

• Toronto police chief unveils 'intelligence-led' plan to curb gun violence

Premier Doug Ford made the announcement at a morning news conference with Toronto Mayor John Tory. 

Tory said the cameras will help ensure police have the resources they need to keep the city safe and hold criminals responsible.

"Toronto is a great city, but we must continue to do more and more to protect our streets, to protect the very neighbourhoods that sometimes end up under siege," Tory said. 

"While the number of homicides has been reduced this year, the level of gun violence continues to be unacceptable."

Toronto police Chief Mark Saunders, who also attended the news conference, declined to specify where the new cameras will be installed, but said their placement will be "intelligence led."

"We recognize that 99.9 per cent of our communities are law abiding people that are scared because of the gun activities that are happening," Saunders told reporters.

He said that at a number of recent town halls with communities most affected by gun violence, "more and more requests are for cameras."

Saunders added that the existing CCTV network has had a "tremendous impact" on the force's ability to pursue suspects following criminal incidents. When asked how more cameras would deter potential violence, Saunders said that improvements in technology have made them an increasingly relevant crime-fighting tool.

"Ten years ago, having cameras at night meant nothing. Today, because of the quality, because of the resolution, it works 24 hours, seven days a week," Saunders said.

The new funding comes during the second Project Community Space, an 11-week, anti-gun violence strategy by police that includes beefing up the force's Integrated Gun and Gang Task Force with 45 experienced major crimes officers from the city's 17 divisions.

Toronto police already use a network of closed-circuit cameras installed throughout the city. (CBC)

The front-line unit will be focused on a number of areas with a high concentration of shootings, though Toronto police Chief Mark Saunders has declined to be more specific about tactics.

Project Community Space is being funded in part with a combined $4.5-million commitment from all three levels of government made earlier this month.

While there have been fewer homicides so far this year than at the some point in 2018, Toronto is currently on pace for a record number of shootings. There have been 274 shootings with 412 victims in the city as of August 19, according to police data.

Tory has also been calling on Ottawa to implement a ban on handguns, but Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has so far only said the federal government will consider additional gun control measures and voters will have to wait for the Liberals' election platform for details.

Tory added Friday that tackling the root causes of gun and gang violence is also important, and he raised the issue last week with Trudeau.

"I am not satisfied that Toronto is receiving all the help that it needs as Canada's largest city, by way of investing in neighbourhoods and young people to keep gang activity away," he said