Health Committee on Jan. 18th, 2022

[The Chair, Liberal, Sean Casey]

Here we go.

[Dr. Theresa Tam]

That was the physical button.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Sean Casey]

Are we good with the interpreters? Is the quality of the sound okay?

[The Clerk]

Yes, Mr. Chair.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Sean Casey]

Okay.

Dr. Tam, thank you. Please go ahead.

[Dr. Theresa Tam]

Thank you very much for this opportunity to appear before you today to speak to the current state of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As we continue to deal with the challenges posed by COVID-19, preventing severe illness and death while minimizing societal disruption remain top priorities in Canada's response to the pandemic.

Omicron continues to spread rapidly and is now the dominant strain in Canada. We have seen an unprecedented surge in case counts far beyond what we experienced in previous waves.

The global consensus is that omicron is associated with less severe illness than the delta variant at the individual level. However, given omicron's substantially higher transmission rate, the smaller proportion of infections with serious outcomes is having a bigger impact at the population level. Already, the enormous volume of cases is driving an increase in severe illness trends nationally, and the surge is expected to exceed historical maximums for new daily hospital admissions, which is already having a heavy impact on hospitals across the country.

It is with this in mind that the Public Health Agency of Canada continues to actively engage with provincial and territorial partners to inform public health guidance and share experience, lessons learned and identified best practices.

In particular, PHAC continues to work with and support provinces, territories and indigenous partners on key challenges they are facing in their ongoing COVID‑19 responses, including vaccine supply, treatments, procurement and distribution of N95 respirators, distribution of rapid tests, and surge testing.

To date, a total of over 74 million doses of vaccines have been administered in Canada, as vaccination continues to be crucial for reducing the risk of severe illness due to COVID-19. Canadian and international evidence shows that two doses of COVID-19 vaccines reduce the risk of hospital admission, including due to omicron infection. Moreover, recent data shows this protection is enhanced by receiving a booster dose following the primary series.

On average, we are seeing positive trends in vaccination rates, with a seven-day rolling average of 375,000 doses administered daily. Nationally, over 88% of eligible Canadians five years of age and older have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while close to 82% are fully vaccinated. In addition, more than 11 million eligible Canadians have received an additional dose as of January 14. Booster doses are particularly important for certain groups, such as health care workers and those at highest risk of severe illness from COVID-19, including older adults, people with high-risk medical conditions and people in and from indigenous communities.

Canada currently has enough mRNA booster doses for all eligible Canadians. However, vaccination alone is not enough. While COVID-19 is still circulating in Canada and internationally, vaccination, including getting an mRNA booster dose as one becomes eligible, continues to be important in combination with timed and targeted public health measures and individual protective practices for slowing COVID-19 infection rates and helping to reduce the impact on health care capacity.

Omicron has shifted the international outlook of COVID‑19. We will continue to monitor our borders, assess risks and ensure testing and public health measures are in place to protect our communities.

We are at a critical point in the pandemic. Keeping infection rates down remains key to mitigating the rise in severe illness trends as much as possible over the coming weeks.

As we push through the omicron surge, continuing to prioritize the health and safety of Canadians through vaccinations, phased border reopening, and the continuation of personal protective measures, such as wearing high-quality, well-fitting masks, will help us save lives and get through this difficult period sooner.

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to generate stress and anxiety for many. Through the Wellness Together Canada online portal, people of all ages across the country can access immediate, free and confidential mental health and substance use supports 24 hours a day, seven days a week. As Canadians continue to demonstrate perseverance and resiliency, despite the duration and the ongoing challenges of the pandemic, I want to thank everyone for their commitment to keeping each other safe.

Thank you. Meegwetch.

[The Chair, Liberal, Sean Casey]

Thank you, Dr. Tam.

We've now exceeded the time allotted for opening statements, so we will go directly to rounds of questions.

We will begin with the Conservatives.

Dr. Ellis, you have the floor for six minutes.

[Stephen Ellis, Conservative, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.

Thank you to all the witnesses and my fellow committee members for being here today.

Certainly, as Conservatives we want to make it very, very clear that there was a failure of leadership in this government in being prepared for the pandemic and the unfortunate circumstances that have continued to persist throughout the pandemic.

The problem here, of course, is that we have lost 30,000 lives in Canada. That is also comparable to the 42,000 Canadians who died during World War II, in which we mounted a massive effort for change. This government has not done that. This failure of leadership has left the provinces with only the ability to have lockdowns as their primary method of treatment. The unfortunate thing is that this is what we're left with as Canadians.

Minister Duclos, I have a few questions for you, sir. Before the pandemic began, acute-care bed occupancy, according to the OECD, in Canada was 91.6%. Only two countries were worse. Are you aware of this problem, sir?

[Jean-Yves Duclos, Liberal, Québec, QC]

Thank you, Member Ellis. Obviously, I also share the knowledge and the sadness of these 30,000 people having died. This being said, because of the hard work we did together, we avoided the situation that we saw in many other countries, including on our southern border. If we'd had the same death rate as the United States, we would have ended with a 90,000 death rate.

That's a tribute—

[Stephen Ellis, Conservative, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

Yes, sir, I understand that.

[Jean-Yves Duclos, Liberal, Québec, QC]

—to the hard work, including the vaccination hard work, we've done over the last few months. I would like to congratulate and thank everyone who got vaccinated in the last few months, and everyone who did the work to get those people vaccinated.

[Stephen Ellis, Conservative, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

Sir, I asked you a question very specifically. This is answer period, not question period. Were you aware that the acute-care bed occupancy was 91.6% in Canada in pre-pandemic days?

[Jean-Yves Duclos, Liberal, Québec, QC]

There are two things on that. The first thing, as we know, is that vaccination is going to remain the key. We want people—

[Stephen Ellis, Conservative, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

Sir, I don't think I asked you anything about vaccination.

[Jean-Yves Duclos, Liberal, Québec, QC]

The second answer is that we have provided $63 billion exactly for that purpose—increasing the ability and capacity in our health care units, including the ICU units, obviously.

[Stephen Ellis, Conservative, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

During the election campaign, your party promised to hire 7,500 new physicians, nurses and nurse practitioners. How many of these have been hired since the election on September 21?

[Jean-Yves Duclos, Liberal, Québec, QC]

We indeed promised a total of $25 billion additional to what we have invested during COVID-19, which is, I repeat, about $63 billion just to protect the health and safety of—

[Stephen Ellis, Conservative, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

It's just the bodies, sir, not the numbers; just the bodies.

[Jean-Yves Duclos, Liberal, Québec, QC]

That involves a total of about $6 billion for primary care access to family doctors, $7 billion to try to—

[Stephen Ellis, Conservative, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

How many have been hired, sir?

[Jean-Yves Duclos, Liberal, Québec, QC]

—look after all that, and another—

[Stephen Ellis, Conservative, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

How many of the 7,500 have been hired? Of the 7,500 people, how many have been hired? It's a simple question.

[Jean-Yves Duclos, Liberal, Québec, QC]

Let me be even more clear. The $63 billion invested until now, with obviously thousands of nurses and doctors being paid and being recruited and being provided with the appropriate care that they need in order to care for so many others—

[Stephen Ellis, Conservative, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

Sir, how many new hires have been made since September 21, which your government promised?

[Jean-Yves Duclos, Liberal, Québec, QC]

Obviously, $63 billion is of great substance and great value to my health colleagues.