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New quarantine pilot announced in YYC (Calgary, Canada)


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Thought my Canadian friends may be interested in the pilot YYC is launching Nov 2nd. This may offer a glimmer of hope to Canadians faced with a 14 day quarantine. There are some restrictions; direct flights being one, but it’s an encouraging step and is intended to promote travel and tourism industries, hit so hard by the pandemic. If it goes well in Calgary hopefully it gets expanded to other Canadian airports. ?
 

https://www.westjet.com/en-ca/travel-info/rapid-testing

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I hope it works.

Wish the UK government would try something like this instead of their toing and froing travel corridors that have totally hammered their travel and tourism industry. My daughter doesn't want to come home for Christmas because she's struggled so much with the quarantine after a quick trip home earlier this month. ?

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3 minutes ago, twangster said:
  • "...reduce their mandatory quarantine to as little as 2 days with a negative test."

Can someone explain the two day quarantine?  

If you test negative why is a 2 day quarantine required? 

(not intended to be political) Government overreach would seem to be one explanation. The other is partial appeasement of those who oppose the change.

You're either clean or required to quarantine. There shouldn't be any in-between.

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10 minutes ago, twangster said:
  • "...reduce their mandatory quarantine to as little as 2 days with a negative test."

Can someone explain the two day quarantine?  

If you test negative why is a 2 day quarantine required? 

The 2 day quarantine is the time it could take to get your initial negative rapid test result, which is expected within 24-48 hours.  

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48 minutes ago, twangster said:
  • "...reduce their mandatory quarantine to as little as 2 days with a negative test."

Can someone explain the two day quarantine?  

If you test negative why is a 2 day quarantine required? 

From what I read yesterday, I seems that it will take up to two days to receive your rapid test results.  Hence the 2 day quarantine.  But there were some discrepancies yesterday between different news sources so who knows.

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15 minutes ago, HeWhoWaits said:

(not intended to be political) Government overreach would seem to be one explanation. The other is partial appeasement of those who oppose the change.

You're either clean or required to quarantine. There shouldn't be any in-between.

You are required to quarantine only until you get back your initial negative rapid test which could take up to 48 hours.  

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Additional details around eligibility. Click on the link below to read more. 
 

Eligible travellers

Eligible candidates returning from international travel:

  • returning Canadian citizens
  • permanent residents
  • foreign nationals currently permitted entry into Canada
  • travellers exempt from 14-day quarantine, including essential service workers

In-eligible candidates:

  • have signs and symptoms of COVID-19 at the time of entry to Canada
  • have been in contact with a confirmed COVID-19 case in the last 14 days
  • do not have an acceptable quarantine plan
  • returning Canadians proceeding to other provinces (participants must stay in Alberta for 14 days after entering Canada)
  • domestic travellers (they are not required to quarantine)

https://www.alberta.ca/international-border-pilot-project.aspx

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  • 2 weeks later...

More details emerge as they relate to conditions/restrictions. Here is an expanded list including sectors that are excluded from participating in the pilot. 
Link to full press release attached. 
https://www.alberta.ca/international-border-pilot-project.aspx#toc-3

Restrictions for specific settings

Participants are prohibited from certain settings during the course of the pilot

School and child care

  • Child care programs (for example daycare, out of school care), K to 12 schools and post secondary institutions  - attendees, students in schools and staff who work in these settings cannot go back to these settings until they have their second test and have received a negative result.

Continuing care, health care and other clinical settings where health care services are provided

  • Pilot participants cannot attend any settings where there are vulnerable people at risk for severe disease for 14 days – this includes all outpatient clinics, acute care, continuing care, long term care, and seniors lodges.
  • This applies to both work and visitation.

Workplaces

  • Individuals may only return to work with the permission of the employer and if the employer has implemented COVID-19 measures in accordance with Alberta’s guidelines or direction from provincial or local public health; and provided the worker adheres to the workplace’s COVID-19 public health measures.
  • Individuals cannot return to work for 14 days where vulnerable populations are present as identified above (continuing care, health care, and other clinical settings).
  • Individuals cannot return to high-risk work places for 14 days. These include:
    • correctional facilities
    • homeless shelters or temporary housing facilities
    • food processing facilities (for example, meat packing plants)
    • warehouses, distribution facilities (including distribution facilities supporting grocery stores), and assembly line manufacturing facilities (but does not include other industrial production sites where COVID-19 prevention measures are implemented and adhered to, for example, petrochemical production facilities)
  • Work camps (but does not include associated work sites such as petrochemical facilities).

Gatherings

  • Pilot participants cannot attend events where there are more than 10 people (including the participant) for 14 days. This includes:
    • planned or unplanned events where individuals mix and mingle and socialize
    • any location or activity where physical distancing is not able to be maintained at all times, (for example, sports, fitness classes, theatre, dance, music, other cohorted activities)
    • structured indoor or outdoor-seated events (for example, concerts, sporting events, and worship services)

Group Living

  • Pilot participants cannot attend or live in group living settings such as homeless shelters, work camps, group homes, student dormitories for 14 days.
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7 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Well that puts our family out of the running if they implement the same thing here in Ontario. ?

I know! Us too as hubby is excluded and Reyd has to remain quarantined until 2nd covid test at day 6 or 7 before he can return to school (so he could potentially cut the 14 day quarantine down by a couple days) Plus the inclusion of “permission of employer” could potentially exclude other employees. 

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  • 1 month later...

Here is an update on the pilot. Key facts from article: 14,372 tested in first 6 weeks, 1.4% tested positive on initial swab, 0.7% tested positive on 2nd swab. Pilot will run for 6 months or until 52,000 passengers have been tested. To be expanded to Edmonton airport early 2021.  
 

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/tom-mcmillan-calgary-airport-westjet-pilot-project-coutts-1.5839173?__vfz=medium%3Dsharebar&fbclid=IwAR1rIBe3ezw4AbeUSMfYJOTJADtvjPUl4olRa0iotoTgiUxB36BPNH_TMPo

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  • 3 weeks later...
7 hours ago, Rose City Cruiser said:

Another hurdle for Canadians considering international travel.  Travelers will have to obtain a negative PCR test before arriving back to Canada.  Will Royal offer PCR tests and their own lab onboard on their ships?

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/garneau-negative-test-airline-1.5858379

A lot of airports here in the US have COVID testing on site now. Hopefully that will help.

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Here is the reply from Alberta Border Pilot confirming a PCR test will be required as part of Canada’s federal announcement prior to boarding a flight. You will then be tested upon arrival at YYC airport and again on day 6 or 7 if you participate in the border pilot.  This sounds like another barrier to Canadians resuming travel anytime soon. ? 

Beginning Jan 7, you will be required to show proof of a negative test before boarding your flight, and if interested in participating in the Alberta Border Pilot, you will be tested again upon your arrival at YYC.

The test prior to returning to Canada is a federal government requirement of all international travelers for entry into the country, while the testing done up at YYC upon your arrival is a condition of participation in the Alberta Border Pilot.  Having a test prior to travel does not count towards the requirements of the pilot.  

Transport Canada link to federal announcement:  
https://www.canada.ca/en/transport-canada/news/2020/12/pre-departure-covid-19-testing-and-negative-results-to-be-required-for-all-air-travellers-coming-to-canada.html

Key takeaways from Canada’s federal announcement:
Documentation of a negative laboratory test result must be presented to the airline prior to boarding a flight to Canada. The test must be performed using a COVID-19 molecular polymerase chain reaction (or PCR) test and must be taken within 72 hours prior to the traveller’s scheduled departure to Canada.

Canadians who are currently travelling and returning to Canada soon should start immediately arranging for a COVID-19 test, to avoid a delay in their return to Canada. Canadians who are planning to travel abroad should consider how they will meet these requirements before departure. 

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6 hours ago, SpeedNoodles said:

A lot of airports here in the US have COVID testing on site now. Hopefully that will help.

Well that’s a bit of good news! Let’s hope they are PCR tests with rapid results prior to boarding. 

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  • 4 weeks later...

New changes announced today requiring participants to remain in quarantine until receiving 2nd negative Covid test due to concerns with variant cases. ? 
 

Travel notices:

  • As of January 25, border pilot participants must now remain in quarantine until receiving a negative result from their second test on day 7 or 8 (counting arrival day as day 1). Travellers currently in the program must immediately return to quarantine if they haven’t taken their second test and received the negative result yet. Participants cannot return to childcare, out of school care, schools, post-secondary institutions, and workplaces outside of their home for 14 days.
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2 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Another key takeaway from this article: "Canada’s main airlines will also suspend service to all Caribbean destinations and Mexico starting this Sunday until April 30."

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