COVID-19 Weekly Update May 8
May 8, 2020
Provincial Update:
Public health officials advise one new case of COVID-19 has been identified as of 9:30 a.m. today. The total number of lab-confirmed positive and probable positive cases in Manitoba is 284.
The data also shows:
– five individuals are currently hospitalized, with no individuals in intensive care;
– 30 active cases and 247 individuals who have recovered from COVID-19; and
– the number of deaths due to COVID-19 remains at seven.
- The Manitoba government is expanding its scholarship and bursary funding program, and will match money raised by post-secondary institutions for scholarships and bursaries this year.
- Effective May 11, Manitobans who have prescriptions for long-term medications will be able to fill them as per their prescriber’s directions up to a three-month supply, if the drug is not affected by shortages.
- Manitoba is offering seniors a one-time, refundable $200 tax credit to offset COVID-19 pandemic costs, such as grocery deliveries and technology needed to stay connected with loved ones. The new seniors economic recovery credit will cost the province about $45 million.
- On Tuesday, it was announced that another Manitoban died after battling the novel coronavirus. A man in his 70s who had underlying health conditions and lived in the Southern Health Region is the province’s seventh COVID-19 related death.
- The City of Winnipeg has announced plans for a renewed partnership with the province including five cooperative measuresin order to rescue faltering economies from COVID-19.
- The Manitoba government will boost infrastructure spending and cut funding to some environmental groups as part of its plan to deal with the fiscal fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic.
- The 2020 Casinos of Winnipeg Summer Entertainment Series at Assiniboine Park Conservancy have been cancelled due to COVID-19 concerns.
- Since the release of Restoring Safe Services Together, Manitoba’s pandemic and economic roadmap for recovery, updates have been made to this document to clarify inconsistencies between the plan and the recent public health orders. The document is available at manitoba.ca/restoringsafeservices.
- The province of Manitoba says it has retested 18 past cases of pneumonia— and ruled out COVID-19 in all of them.
- Manitoba Public Insurance will rebate $110 million to about 700,000 policyholders in the next several weeks after receiving regulatory approval from the Public Utilities Board.
- A small cluster of novel coronavirus cases under investigation by provincial health officials is connected to the Brandon terminal of a trucking business headquartered in Winnipeg.
- Greyhound Canada has announced that it will temporarily suspend all of its bus routes in Canada due to a rapid decrease of revenue and ridership amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Manitoba’s adult jail population has fallen to its lowest level in a decade, declining by almost 30 per cent in the last two months in the midst of a worldwide pandemic.
Manitobans are reminded that if they are showing symptoms of COVID-19 and meet testing criteria, they can call Health Links–Info Santé at 204-788-8200 or (toll-free) at 1-888-315-9257 for more information.
For up-to-date information on testing criteria and community screening sites, visit www.gov.mb.ca/covid19/locations.html. For more information and to access the online screening tool for COVID-19, visit www.manitoba.ca/covid19.
A comprehensive list of Manitoba government COVID-19 measures can be found at:
https://manitoba.ca/bg/2020/04/covid19.html.
Federal Updates:
The number of total cases of COVID-19 in Canada was 65,399 as of May 8, 2020, including 4,471 deaths.
- Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a wage top-up for frontline workers dealing COVID-19, but said it would be up to provincial governments to decide who gets the raise. Trudeau said his government is putting up approximately $3 billion for the program, while the provinces are contributing another $1 billion.
- Trudeau announced a new $77 million fund for aimed at helping farmers and food processorssafely navigate the novel coronavirus pandemic.
- Canada is contributing $850 million to the global fight against COVID-19, a commitment he made Monday morning during a virtual global summit focused on raising funds for research and development of vaccines and treatments.
- Families receiving the Canada Child Benefit (CCB) will get $300 extra per childin May to help them deal with the added pressures of COVID-19. This increase will deliver almost $2 billion in extra support across the country to help families with the high cost of taking care of their kids during this challenging period.
- Canada’s unemployment rate soared to 13 per cent in April, with the country shedding roughly two million jobsas a result of the coronavirus-induced economic shutdown, according to the latest data from Statistics Canada.
- More than half a million Canadians have now received emergency loans amid the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to the 545,000 people now receiving aid, another 7.5 million have received at least one payment from the emergency response benefit, and 110,000 businesses have applied to the wage subsidy program.
- Quebec,which has been the epicenter of the outbreak in Canada, is moving forward with an approach that offers one timeline for the greater Montreal area and another for the rest of the province. On Thursday, the province said the planned reopening of retail shops, daycares and primary schools in Montreal was being delayed until May 25.
- British Columbia announced plans for the province to reopen. As of next weekend, gatherings with two to six guests will be allowed.
For the latest info on the state of COVID-19 in Canada, visit the Government of Canada’s website.
Industry Updates:
Manitoba adds $500M to budget for infrastructure projects to ‘restart economy’
Important Provincial Links
COVID-19 Manitoba Screening Tool
MB COVID-19 Information and Resources
Important National Links
Apply for EI
Government of Canada’s COVID-19 information page
Travel Advisory Information
Canada’s Building Trades Union