Negative test to be required before flying to Canada

[gisele2]

I don't know where you all live, but in my province we are seeing people lying about there whereabouts to get treated in hospital before the end of their quarantine exposing everybody else to the possibility of contracting the virus. I work in oncology, so getting the infection can be a death sentence. I do not like delation in normal times, but right now I am glad that some family member phoned us and told us about their loved ones being illegal. Just listen to the news, there will be a time where the health system, like in many countries, will have to choose who gets treated and who is let to die.

 

[Carolynleanne]

Basically, they're trying to stop people from traveling unless it's ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL. Yes, they've said that before, but the only rule was that you quarantine upon return to Canada. Many were willing to do that. By requiring you to get a negative test before boarding a plane back to Canada, they're hoping this will stop the vacationers who were willing to deal with the quarantine. You'll STILL need to quarantine for two weeks once you get home, even if you get that negative test before getting on a plane. Personally, I was willing to deal with a two week quarantine and would be fine abiding by those rules. But risking ONE of us getting a negative test in a foreign country and not being able to go back home? Or staying in a government run quarantine facility for two weeks? That's a big nope. We'll be staying put til the borders are open or the restrictions are lifted - as hard as that is for our frequently traveling family. And I'm a TA! It's like the final nail in our coffin.

 

[ilovetotravel1977]

They are doing this because a number of the premiers asked them to.

I thought Ford was advocating for testing upon arrival, so they could implement something similar to Alberta to shorten the quarantine as well. I don't recall any premier asking for testing prior to getting on the plane, just testing once landing, then the 5-7 retest, then if all negative, no more quarantine. That makes more sense at this point.

And what I really don't understand is that it has been said that this new rule doesn't have any impact on Alberta's airport testing strategy. Are travelers coming through there not required to participate in this new rule?

 

[Carolynleanne]

I thought Ford was advocating for testing upon arrival, so they could implement something similar to Alberta to shorten the quarantine as well. I don't recall any premier asking for testing prior to getting on the plane, just testing once landing, then the 5-7 retest, then if all negative, no more quarantine. That makes more sense at this point.

And what I really don't understand is that it has been said that this new rule doesn't have any impact on Alberta's airport testing strategy. Are travelers coming through there not required to participate in this new rule?

It's a straight up mess.

 

[Jrb1979]

I thought Ford was advocating for testing upon arrival, so they could implement something similar to Alberta to shorten the quarantine as well. I don't recall any premier asking for testing prior to getting on the plane, just testing once landing, then the 5-7 retest, then if all negative, no more quarantine. That makes more sense at this point.

And what I really don't understand is that it has been said that this new rule doesn't have any impact on Alberta's airport testing strategy. Are travelers coming through there not required to participate in this new rule?

I think this plan makes much better sense. One it will stop people from traveling which we've been advised not to travel. Two it will stop people from bringing Covid into Canada. Stopping before it gets here is much better then allowing people to bring it here and dealing with it after.

It's a straight up mess.

It is a mess. Would be much less a mess if people listened and didn't travel in the first place.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

I’ve only known a couple of people who have entered the country since the summer but both of those were subjected to numerous phone calls (ie almost daily), emails about what to do and both received visits from local police (in two different jurisdictions) to ensure they were quarantining. I know it’s not perfect but when I look at the lax conditions other countries have with zero quarantine I really think Canada is doing a lot. They’re not perfect but I feel they’re doing a good job of enforcing the quarantine.

My son and his fiance have been in quarantine since the 23rd of December, and aside from one automated message via phone, there has been zero follow up to ensure their compliance (which, for the record, has been 100% to the letter). My husband's boss and his wife, who started their quarantine upon arrival back in Ontario in mid-December, have had a similar experience. While Canada is doing "some" follow up, I'm not sure based on our personal experiences that I'd say its "a lot". At best, it's hit and miss.

 

[pigletto]

My sister visited from the US in October and the program was followed to the letter. She was contacted regularly.. BUT she was part of a pilot program between Pearson and McMaster and I suspect that was the difference. I suspect this a matter of staffing and resources to follow up with everyone who lands. We’ve had to deal with so much of this on the fly, it doesn’t surprise me that there were no protocols in place, but it’s time to get some quickly.

 

[quandrea]

My son and his fiance have been in quarantine since the 23rd of December, and aside from one automated message via phone, there has been zero follow up to ensure their compliance (which, for the record, has been 100% to the letter). My husband's boss and his wife, who started their quarantine upon arrival back in Ontario in mid-December, have had a similar experience. While Canada is doing "some" follow up, I'm not sure based on our personal experiences that I'd say its "a lot". At best, it's hit and miss.

Hit or miss is right, I think. My friend returned from Hong Kong and was called daily to check on her quarantine. Perhaps country of arrival is a consideration.

 

[Best_Vacation_EVER!]

My son and his fiance have been in quarantine since the 23rd of December, and aside from one automated message via phone, there has been zero follow up to ensure their compliance (which, for the record, has been 100% to the letter). My husband's boss and his wife, who started their quarantine upon arrival back in Ontario in mid-December, have had a similar experience. While Canada is doing "some" follow up, I'm not sure based on our personal experiences that I'd say its "a lot". At best, it's hit and miss.

Good that your son and his fiance are being responsible.... The fact the government are not watching people arriving in the country/region like hawks ... is pretty much an indictment of whats going on...

Responsible people in the country are dealing with the many restrictions to daily life generally. I lined up for 45 minutes to get into a grocery store to get milk this week .... To be honest I think anyone travelling who wants to come back to Canada should have to prove they don't have Covid (through a test at their own cost.... since the travel was either discretionary (ie. recreational) or would be paid by an employer.) I'd also like to see the provincial health plans refuse to cover medical (or at least add a super surcharge) for those who did leisure travel (while a travel advisory is in place) during a pandemic without a super good reason.

 

[Jrb1979]

Good that your son and his fiance are being responsible.... The fact the government are not watching people arriving in the country/region like hawks ... is pretty much an indictment of whats going on...

Responsible people in the country are dealing with the many restrictions to daily life generally. I lined up for 45 minutes to get into a grocery store to get milk this week .... To be honest I think anyone travelling who wants to come back to Canada should have to prove they don't have Covid (through a test at their own cost.... since the travel was either discretionary (ie. recreational) or would be paid by an employer.) I'd also like to see the provincial health plans refuse to cover medical (or at least add a super surcharge) for those who did leisure travel (while a travel advisory is in place) during a pandemic without a super good reason.

I wish I could love your post more. I agree completely and I don't think anyone should be going outside of the country right now.

 

[accm]

It's a straight up mess.

I think this is the real problem. Premiers kept pressuring the federal government to do something, so they just threw something together.
People keep talking about going outside of the country, but you're just as likely of getting sick from traveling in Canada, and in Ontario where I am, there are zero travel restrictions. I think these testing requirements would be great if they were accompanied by other actions, but by itself? It just looks like something to please the public that will have minimal results.

I also think people need to remember that different people have different thresholds for what they consider essential, and that's ok. For someone, nothing would be considered essential, while others, might feel like a trip for mental health reasons is essential. I don't think we should be judging people's decisions as long as they are following all the rules set in place.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Responsible people in the country are dealing with the many restrictions to daily life generally. I lined up for 45 minutes to get into a grocery store to get milk this week .... To be honest I think anyone travelling who wants to come back to Canada should have to prove they don't have Covid (through a test at their own cost.... since the travel was either discretionary (ie. recreational) or would be paid by an employer.)

I agree. As a Canadian living in the USA, I would LOVE if my home country would develop a system to more strictly monitor those who are coming and going, since the spread of the virus is impacting MY ability to return home. Testing where I live is so commonplace, it is unfathomable to us that there was no testing requirement for my son and his fiance when the travelled by air. I, personally, would much rather see Canada require proof of a series of tests taken a certain amount of time apart versus blanket instructions of "just go home and quarantine for 14 days" which are obviously not being monitored as strictly as they should be.

I would also like to be able to prove that I don't have Covid, so I can see my mom before her rapidly progressing Alzheimers Disease steals her from me permanently. I'd happily take the tests to provide that proof. And I'd gladly do the same in reverse (upon my return to the USA) so that the US government could rest assured I wasn't bringing the virus back from Canada, either.

Honestly, I would also like to see land border traffic restricted FAR more than it is currently. They say the land borders are closed, by my husband's company has cross border workers who make the commute from Ontario to Michigan daily for work purposes. Those individuals do not have to quarantine. Truckers are crossing daily with goods (not all of which are "essential".....don't try to tell me that every truck is loaded with only essentials that Canada cannot produce themselves, and vice versa for those shipments coming into the USA......both countries are more than capable of fulfilling their essential needs) and they aren't subject to quarantine rules. Those folks could just as easily spread Covid-19 as any other traveler.

 

[Jrb1979]

I think this is the real problem. Premiers kept pressuring the federal government to do something, so they just threw something together.
People keep talking about going outside of the country, but you're just as likely of getting sick from traveling in Canada, and in Ontario where I am, there are zero travel restrictions. I think these testing requirements would be great if they were accompanied by other actions, but by itself? It just looks like something to please the public that will have minimal results.

I also think people need to remember that different people have different thresholds for what they consider essential, and that's ok. For someone, nothing would be considered essential, while others, might feel like a trip for mental health reasons is essential. I don't think we should be judging people's decisions as long as they are following all the rules set in place.

There is not different thresholds for what is essential. There is a reason they post on the Canada site saying to avoid non essential travel. You shouldn't be traveling inside Ontario right now either. Its been tough for all of us. Its disappointing to see so many take unnecessary risks cause they need a vacation.

Sorry if this comes off rude but it's frustrating to see so many people downplay Covid and think life is normal.

 

[accm]

There is not different thresholds for what is essential. There is a reason they post on the Canada site saying to avoid non essential travel. You shouldn't be traveling inside Ontario right now either. Its been tough for all of us. Its disappointing to see so many take unnecessary risks cause they need a vacation.

Sorry if this comes off rude but it's frustrating to see so many people downplay Covid and think life is normal.

What is essential? The Canada said doesn't define it. Right now I shouldn't be traveling, but a couple of weeks ago I could travel within Ontario and Canada without any testing/quarantining.
This is not a black and white issue, and I think a lot of people on here are making it out to be. Deciding to take a vacation does not equal downplaying Covid.

 

[Jrb1979]

What is essential? The Canada said doesn't define it. Right now I shouldn't be traveling, but a couple of weeks ago I could travel within Ontario and Canada without any testing/quarantining.
This is not a black and white issue, and I think a lot of people on here are making it out to be. Deciding to take a vacation does not equal downplaying Covid.

It is a black and white issue. Right on the Canada site it says to avoid any non essential travel. How more black and white do people need it. Taking a vacation isn't essential right now. Its really not that hard to understand. I hope this negative Covid test does its job and even if it catches a few people from bringing Covid into Canada the better.

 

[Best_Vacation_EVER!]

It is a black and white issue. Right on the Canada site it says to avoid any non essential travel. How more black and white do people need it. Taking a vacation isn't essential right now. Its really not that hard to understand. I hope this negative Covid test does its job and even if it catches a few people from bringing Covid into Canada the better.

Unfortunately... some people need to have more proof that their abject selfishness/non-essestial travel costs Canada more than they realize (maybe we could open restaurants, small business if the selfish just quarantined or didn't travel....... Gonna guess they won't though... since their rights, their rights, screw everyone else.... super selfishness encapulated.... Hopefully the new requirement will make it so that people have to have some stake in proving the travel was safe (through testing) --- although they should still have to quarantine since a negative/positive test doesn't indicate no exposure for a multiple day period.

What is essential? The Canada said doesn't define it. Right now I shouldn't be traveling, but a couple of weeks ago I could travel within Ontario and Canada without any testing/quarantining.
This is not a black and white issue, and I think a lot of people on here are making it out to be. Deciding to take a vacation does not equal downplaying Covid.

Theme park in Florida, a state where they've done little if anything to contain a severe virus/pandemic at all... the choice should probably be pretty clear. Don't go if you don't have to...

Just a hint for you --- in Canada we share the cost of health expenses through taxes ... because (like most of Europe/UK) we realize that humans and human life have an intrisic value. Is there anyone I know out there working or otherwise who I figure would be worth the pro/con evaluation of their life versus your vacation --- if the result was their catching covid and dying so that you could spend a few days in a theme park... no not really.

 

[newdeal]

Please stop with the conspiracy theories. They are doing this because a number of the premiers asked them to. It has nothing to do with bailouts.

And your “I wish I was American right now”. I suggest you look at what the state of many American hospitals are right now. And the number of people getting really sick and those losing their life. But I mean if being able to do whatever the heck you want is more important then people, well you can always move.

I don't wish to argue, you may be right, although the airlines will surely need bail outs after this. We will continue to test asymptomatic people in an eternal game of whack a mole and throw our money down the drain as billions continue to be spent on testing instead of the obvious which would be to increase hospital capacity. I suppose thats their only option since unfortunately don't have the staff to man the increased capacity, unfortunately that is a result of our government constantly targeting the MDs/health providers in regards to decreasing remuneration and increasing taxation as well as the health care system in general when trying to balance the budget. There is really no need for this, they could easily balance the system so that the entire medical system isn't under-serviced. Unfortunately the teachers union is too powerful a force and the MDs are low hanging fruit since these are the two largest budget items for Ontario and likely the other provinces as well.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

It is a black and white issue. Right on the Canada site it says to avoid any non essential travel. How more black and white do people need it. Taking a vacation isn't essential right now. Its really not that hard to understand. I hope this negative Covid test does its job and even if it catches a few people from bringing Covid into Canada the better.

So how do you justify the movement of goods between the two countries at the land borders? I'm not being argumentative, I'm truly trying to understand how Canadians do not view that as non-essential? As an industrialized nation, what is Canada not able to generate (save for perhaps tropical fruits) that needs to be sourced from the USA right now (and vice versa)? And for a virus this deadly, can a country not live without those few items for the short term? (eat an apple instead, they really are good for you) Surely you can see that a truck driver, who would be frequenting rest stops and fast food outlets all along his route, would be statistically putting himself in many more Covid-catching situations than many average citizens, a good deal of whom have been working from the safety of their home during the pandemic?

To say it's black and white is nonsensical. The world is connected in more ways than any of us can understand. I hope you are also advocating for every Canadian who lives in a border city (nurses and medical staff included) to cease their employment until this virus is under control, because by your logic we don't want the Canadians from Windsor bringing Covid into Michigan hospitals (the super-strain was identified in Canada before it was identified here.....and health care workers are at a far greater risk of exposure than us "regular" folks).

Not everyone who is traveling from one country to another is doing so for a "vacation". I personally know a few people who have had to travel home to prepare final arrangements for loved ones who have passed away (and none of those people died from covid, for the record). Others need to care for relatives with cancer, or who have been gravely injured in an auto accident (with young children who need care). Please try and open your mind to realize that not everyone wants to jaunt across the border to go to Disney World or host a house party with 30 friends. For someone who has lived their whole life in one country and doesn't have connections outside of those borders, its easy to wear your blinders and pretend life is that small. Let me assure you it isn't.

 

[newdeal]

Unfortunately... some people need to have more proof that their abject selfishness/non-essestial travel costs Canada more than they realize (maybe we could open restaurants, small business if the selfish just quarantined or didn't travel....... Gonna guess they won't though... since their rights, their rights, screw everyone else.... super selfishness encapulated.... Hopefully the new requirement will make it so that people have to have some stake in proving the travel was safe (through testing) --- although they should still have to quarantine since a negative/positive test doesn't indicate no exposure for a multiple day period.
Theme park in Florida, a state where they've done little if anything to contain a severe virus/pandemic at all... the choice should probably be pretty clear. Don't go if you don't have to...

Just a hint for you --- in Canada we share the cost of health expenses through taxes ... because (like most of Europe/UK) we realize that humans and human life have an intrisic value. Is there anyone I know out there working or otherwise who I figure would be worth the pro/con evaluation of their life versus your vacation --- if the result was their catching covid and dying so that you could spend a few days in a theme park... no not really.

Its not about COVID a lot of times now, its about optics. If it was about COVID we wouldn't be complaining about a politician in Alberta going to Hawaii, where they also require a negative covid test within three days of boarding the plan to enter, and which has around a quarter the cases per capita that Alberta has. That person has a lower chance getting COVID in Hawaii than they do staying in Alberta, and they paid for their own test before going in an effort to keep the people of Hawaii safe where due to their isolation it becomes much harder to deal with any type of health burden. I find it funny that everyone already complains about our health system being garbage, and now when its most evident so little is being done to actually correct it because the brain drain that has been going on for decades has made the ship so slow to turn.

 

[Jrb1979]

So how do you justify the movement of goods between the two countries at the land borders? I'm not being argumentative, I'm truly trying to understand how Canadians do not view that as non-essential? As an industrialized nation, what is Canada not able to generate (save for perhaps tropical fruits) that needs to be sourced from the USA right now (and vice versa)? And for a virus this deadly, can a country not live without those few items for the short term? (eat an apple instead, they really are good for you) Surely you can see that a truck driver, who would be frequenting rest stops and fast food outlets all along his route, would be statistically putting himself in many more Covid-catching situations than many average citizens, a good deal of whom have been working from the safety of their home during the pandemic?

To say it's black and white is nonsensical. The world is connected in more ways than any of us can understand. I hope you are also advocating for every Canadian who lives in a border city (nurses and medical staff included) to cease their employment until this virus is under control, because by your logic we don't want the Canadians from Windsor bringing Covid into Michigan hospitals (the super-strain was identified in Canada before it was identified here.....and health care workers are at a far greater risk of exposure than us "regular" folks).

Not everyone who is traveling from one country to another is doing so for a "vacation". I personally know a few people who have had to travel home to prepare final arrangements for loved ones who have passed away (and none of those people died from covid, for the record). Others need to care for relatives with cancer, or who have been gravely injured in an auto accident (with young children who need care). Please try and open your mind to realize that not everyone wants to jaunt across the border to go to Disney World or host a house party with 30 friends. For someone who has lived their whole life in one country and doesn't have connections outside of those borders, its easy to wear your blinders and pretend life is that small. Let me assure you it isn't.

There is a difference in supply lines and those going on vacation. The Canadian site even says for people to avoid any non essential travel. I don't see what's so hard to understand about that. Its one thing to cross the border to work or for truckers to bring goods across and another to go on vacation. All the things you said I would say are essential. Going on a vacation isn't one.