'Our kids are going to be super vulnerable in our schools': Alta. doctors calling on feds for help
A coalition of doctors has sent a letter to the prime minister asking the federal government for funding to help Alberta schools prevent the spread of COVID-19.
“Most Alberta parents feel completely abandoned by the provincial government, the direct result of their change in policy is that our kids are going to be super vulnerable in our schools,” said Dr. Joe Vipond, an emergency room physician.
“Not only will kids be able to go to school with COVID, they won’t even know they have COVID because we aren’t doing testing anymore.”
The group of five doctors is asking for $80 million to go directly to schools, bypassing the provincial government. Their letter calls decisions to remove testing, tracing and mandatory isolation by the provincial government “reckless and irresponsible.”
“Although kids are less affected, they don’t tend to die from COVID… a certain number of them endure long COVID,” said Vipond. “Even if the percentage of hospitalizations is pretty low, if you get a whole bunch of infected kids, there’s going to be a substantial number of people that are hospitalized or in the ICU.
“If we can get help from the school boards, the feds, even our municipal governments, we’ll take help wherever we can, since the provincial government has abdicated their responsibility.”
The money would go towards air filtration units, high quality masks, and CO2 monitors, according to Vipond, who is also a parent.
“It’s pretty clear this is an airborne-transmitted disease, so unless we recognize how it’s transmitted, it’s very hard to see how we’re going to mitigate that transmission.”
The letter to the prime minister claims the government of Alberta failed to provide schools with funds previously allocated by the provincial government.
According to a statement from Alberta Education, school authorities have had access to $1 billion in funding for COVID-19.
“Alberta’s government provided school divisions $250 million in accelerated capital maintenance funding for things like HVAC and mechanical upgrades,” said Alberta Education in the statement. “School divisions chose to only spend approximately $44 million on H-VAC and ventilation upgrades in schools.
“We are confident that all school authorities have been provided the supports they need to provide a safe, world class education to their students.”
Alberta Education added that an additional guidance document is being finalized and is due to be released in mid-August.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Bob Cole, veteran CBC broadcaster and former voice of 'Hockey Night in Canada,' dead at 90
Bob Cole, legendary CBC broadcaster and former voice of Hockey Night in Canada, has died. He was 90.
Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction overturned by N.Y. appeals court
New York's highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction, reversing a landmark ruling of the #MeToo era in determining the trial judge improperly allowed women to testify about allegations against the ex-movie mogul that weren't part of the case.
BREAKING Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment that is banned at Queen’s Park.
CTE: Researchers believe widespread brain injury may contribute to veteran suicide rate
Researchers are working to better understand if some Canadian military veterans may be suffering from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, also known as CTE -- a disorder previously found in the brains of professional football and hockey players after their death.
1 arrested in northern Alberta during public shelter order
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
New deep-water channel allows first ship to pass Key bridge wreckage in Baltimore
The first cargo ship passed through a newly opened deep-water channel in Baltimore on Thursday after being stuck in the harbor since the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed four weeks ago, halting most maritime traffic through the city's port.