Coronavirus (COVID-19) National News

OTTAWA — With new and more contagious variants of COVID-19 escalating in Canada, provincial governments lifting lockdown restrictions must be ready to slam them back into place at a moment's notice, Canada's chief public health doctor said Tuesday.

Older British Columbians may receive instructions for getting vaccinated against COVID-19 within the coming days as the province prepares to roll out its mass vaccination efforts.

The trend of fewer British Columbians in hospital with COVID-19, and fewer residents battling active infections continued on February 8, as the government released new data. There are now 234 people in B.C.

OTTAWA — Hotel operators seeking to take part in Canada's mandatory three-day quarantine for returning travellers can now access the criteria, though it comes as cold comfort to a battered industry.

Several provinces began relaxing COVID-19 restrictions on Monday amid what Canada’s chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam described as "hopeful signs of declining COVID-19 activity.

As concerns about internationally identified COVID-19 variants hit closer to home, public health authorities are asking — and increasingly, ordering — people to isolate safely, away from others in their household.

It has been particularly difficult for the restaurant industry to bounce back during the COVID-19 pandemic.

VANCOUVER — COVID-19 has taken a toll on many Canadians, but for Chinese-Canadians the impacts have been magnified by racism aimed at individuals and businesses, community leaders say.

OTTAWA — Canada's languid vaccination efforts have no chance of improvement this week with just 70,200 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine scheduled to start arriving.

Canada crossed another disheartening threshold in the COVID-19 pandemic on Saturday, even as the country's top doctor said there are hopeful signs with case counts and hospitalizations gradually trending downward.