Coronavirus: What’s happening in Canada and around the world on Friday | CBC News

In Newfoundland and Labrador, officials said they are aiming to have students back in class as of Jan. 24 after beginning the new year with remote education.

“While I know it’s not perfect, it has allowed us to minimize learning loss during these difficult times,” said Education Minister Tom Osborne.

Newfoundland and Labrador health officials said Thursday that hospitalizations had increased to eight, up one from Wednesday. Three people required critical care, officials said in their COVID-19 update.

Prince Edward Island students will also be learning at home until at least Jan. 24, officials said Thursday, citing increasing spread of COVID-19 on the island.

“When we open we want to do everything we can to stay open,” Premier Dennis King said at a COVID-19 briefing Thursday. “Because we know the starts and stops are even more challenging and troubling.” 

Health officials in P.E.I. on Thursday said eight people were being treated for COVID-19 in hospital, with one in intensive care.

Students in Nova Scotia will be back in classrooms as of Monday. Education Minister Becky Druhan said the province has a plan in place to deal with potential staffing shortages, including calling in administrators and educators who aren’t in classrooms. The president of the Nova Scotia Teachers Union expressed concern that the measures could lead to unplanned school closures. The union has previously said schools should stick with remote learning until there’s a substantial decrease in cases.

Nova Scotia health officials on Thursday said 59 people were in hospital with COVID-19 — including seven people receiving intensive care.

Meanwhile, in New Brunswick, the premier announced a return of strict COVID-19 restrictions as the province struggles with severe strain on hospital systems.

The province on Thursday reported a total of 104 people were hospitalized with COVID-19, including nine people in intensive care.

“These measures are serious, and that is because we are facing a very serious situation,” Dr. Jennifer Russell, chief medical officer of health, said in a statement.

Russell urged people to limit their contact with others and stick to their own household as she outlined the new restrictions, which include bans on public gatherings and capacity restrictions.

-From CBC News with files from The Canadian Press, last updated at 7:10 a.m. ET

What’s happening across Canada

WATCH | Cross-border truckers must be vaccinated, Ottawa says: 

Cross-border truckers must be vaccinated, Ottawa says

The federal government says all truck drivers crossing into Canada must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, regardless of nationality, effective Saturday. Trucking associations on both sides of the border say that policy could hurt already strained supply chains, by taking even more drivers out of circulation. 2:00

With lab-based testing capacity deeply strained and increasingly restricted, experts say true case counts are likely far higher than reported. Hospitalization data at the regional level is also evolving, with several provinces saying they will report figures that separate the number of people in hospital because of COVID-19 from those in hospital for another medical issue who also test positive for COVID-19.

For more information on what is happening in your community — including details on outbreaks, testing capacity and local restrictions — click through to the regional coverage below.

You can also read more from the Public Health Agency of Canada, which provides a detailed look at every region — including seven-day average test positivity rates — in its daily epidemiological updates.

In Central Canada, Quebec Premier François Legault announced that students will return to class on Monday. Legault also announced that the province’s 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew will be lifted as of Monday, saying experts report cases have peaked and the “wave of hospitalizations is expected to peak in the coming days.”

Quebec on Thursday reported 2,994 hospitalizations, up by 117 from a day earlier. The province, which reported 45 additional deaths, had 272 people in intensive care. Health officials recorded 8,793 new lab-confirmed cases, though the true number is likely far higher as access to PCR testing is limited.

In Ontario, health officials on Thursday reported a total of 3,630 hospitalizations, an increase of 182 from a day earlier. According to the province’s COVID-19 dashboard, 500 people were in ICUs. The update came as the province reported an additional 35 deaths, along with 9,909 additional lab-confirmed cases.

In the North, leaders in Nunavut said Thursday that the tight restrictions put in place before the holidays have been so effective that the government can cancel travel restrictions as of Monday. The territory will also allow businesses to reopen and schools will resume in-person learning on Jan. 24

In the Prairie provinces, health officials in Manitoba reported nine additional deaths on Thursday. The province also reported an additional 45 hospitalizations, bringing the number of people in hospital with COVID-19 to 499 — with 47 people in intensive care units. The province also saw an additional 1,228 lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19.

The update comes as the province said Manitoba schools will no longer notify close contacts of people with COVID-19 infections when students return to class next week.

In Saskatchewan, Premier Scott Moe has tested positive for COVID-19 using a rapid antigen test. A statement from his office says he was not experiencing any symptoms. Moe said in a posting on Twitter that he felt fine, was self-isolating and was working from home for the next five days.

The province on Thursday reported a total of 123 hospitalizations, an increase of two from a day earlier, with 11 people in intensive care. The province also reported 945 additional lab-confirmed cases. 

Alberta on Thursday reported 786 COVID-19 hospitalizations, an increase of 38 from a day earlier. According to the province, 79 people were in the province’s intensive care units. The province reported eight additional deaths on Thursday, along with 6,010 additional lab-confirmed cases. 

In British Columbia, health officials on Thursday reported an increase of 34 hospitalizations, bringing the total number of people in hospital with COVID-19 to 534. The province also reported a total of 102 people in ICUs.  There were seven additional deaths, the province said, along with 2,554 additional lab-confirmed cases.

-From CBC News and The Canadian Press, last updated at 7:10 a.m. ET

What’s happening around the world

As of early Friday morning, roughly 320.6 million cases had been reported worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University’s coronavirus tracker. The reported global death toll stood at more than 5.5 million.

In the Americas, the U.S. Supreme Court blocked Joe Biden’s vaccination-or-testing mandate for large businesses, a policy the conservative justices deemed an improper imposition on the lives and health of Americans, while endorsing a separate federal vaccine requirement for health-care facilities.

Brazil is suffering a sharp rise in cases as the Omicron variant spreads through the country, putting pressure on health services and weighing on an already sputtering economy.

In the Asia-Pacific region, unvaccinated tennis star Novak Djokovic asked an Australian court to block his deportation ahead of the Australian Open after the government cancelled his visa for the second time over COVID-19 entry regulations.

Hong Kong will suspend for a month transit flights from around 150 countries and territories considered high risk, deepening the global financial hub’s isolation.

In the Middle East, health officials in Iran on Friday reported 24 additional COVID-19 deaths and 2,539 additional cases of COVID-19.

In Africa, health officials in South Africa on Thursday reported 5,920 new cases and 159 additional deaths.

In Europe, Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson has tested positive for COVID-19, her spokesperson said, as a growing wave of infections swept the country.

Norway will offer COVID-19 vaccines to all children aged five years and above, the government said, having previously only offered vaccines to children aged 12 and older.

-From Reuters and CBC News, last updated at 7:15 a.m. ET