After demands from the opposition for greater government presence in the face of rising cases of COVID-19the Minister of Health Christian Dubé appealed for caution on Thursday, a few hours from the family gatherings planned during the long Easter holiday.
Mr. Dubé particularly warned the elderly because of their vulnerability in this sixth wave of contagion.
“These people who are older, more vulnerable, they are the ones who should be a little more careful, especially during the Easter weekend,” he said in a press briefing.
Mr. Dubé echoed to the broader message of the interim national director of public healththe Dr Luc Boileau.
“I think Dr. Boileau, what he said was, ‘Let’s not take unnecessary risks,'” he said.
The Minister also acknowledged that wearing a mask remains an important tool in the fight once morest the virus. He was thus reacting to the hypothesis that Mr. Boileau might extend the duration of this measure following April 30.
“I’ll let him finalize his decision on that, but you see, you feel a lot safer when you have the mask on,” he said.
Towards prolonged mask wearing?
The Dr Boileau said Thursday in a radio interview with 98,5 that it study the possibility of recommending to the government to extend the wearing of the mask for two weeks.
In an interview published in the edition of To have to of Thursday, the regional director of public health of Montreal, Mylène Drouin, also pleaded for the maintenance of the wearing of the mask in public places until COVID-19 cases clearly decline.
Wednesday, the Quebec Liberal Party, Solidarity Quebec (QS) and the Parti Quebecois ont asked the government to be more present in particular by relaying public health messages.
Minister Dubé stressed that these calls are contradictory since the oppositions have in the past demanded more independence of public health from members of the government.
“You have noticed that, for the past few months, Public Health has been taking press briefings alone, and they are making recommendations to us. So they have to make up their minds. Do they want Public Health that is independent or politically influenced? “, he asked while insisting on the independence of Mr. Boileau.
Mr. Dubé rejected the accusations of QS MP Vincent Marissal, who argued that the government is less present on the front lines of the pandemic due to the approach of the elections, in October.
“I have been associated with the management of the pandemic for two years, then I am very proud of the work we have done,” retorted the Minister of Health.
Mr. Dubé warned that the increase in the number of COVID-19 cases will continue to put pressure on the health network, where 13,000 employees are absent.
“It’s going to be tough in the ER for the next two weeks,” he said.
