AFN Alberta COVID-19 Bulletin Thursday, January 14, 2021 AFN Alberta is summarizing updates and information we are receiving on our website. All our previous bulletins can be found on this page as well: http://www.afnab.ca/News-and-Events/Coronavirus. The next bulletin will be sent Thursday, January 21, 2021. HIGHLIGHTS January 6 January 13 Change* Tests Completed 2,873,566 2,950,446 +76,880 Total Positive 107,501 112,743 +5,242 Active 13,450 13,220 -230 Fatalities 1,193 1,345 +152 Recoveries 92,858 98,178 +5,320 COVID-19 Regional Data for Alberta COVID-19 in Indigenous Peoples (both on and off reserve) Calgary zone - 43,140 Edmonton zone - 47,798 (As of January 06) Central zone - 7,834 Total - 8,716 On-Reserve only - 3,754 Active - 2,066 South zone - 5,300 North zone - 8,494 Current Hospital - 127 Current ICU - 33 Unidentified zone - 177 Recovered - 5,776 Deaths - 61 FN Cases by Zone (both on and off reserve) North - 2,298 Central - 2,045 South - 428 Calgary - 1,441 Edmonton - 2,485 Feedback Wanted! ● As we enter the new year, we appreciate how you have all supported your Nations in combating COVID-19. We hope that our weekly bulletin has helped to inform and guide you along the way. We’ve received some good feedback on the value of this bulletin as an informational tool, and we are looking to make it even better! ● Please send your suggestions for the kinds of information you would like to see in the bulletin or focus areas going forward to p [email protected] New Measures ● *NEW* P rovincial restrictions on gathering and other enhanced public health restrictions remain in effect until at least January 21, 2021. ● Under new federal rules, as of Thursday, anyone older than five entering Canada will be required to show proof of a negative test - taken within 72 hours before the flight - before being allowed to board the plan. First Nation-specific Updates ● *NEW* O n Wednesday, Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller announced $1.2 billion in new funding to help Indigenous communities keep fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. Full details below . ● *NEW* S toney Nakoda First Nation is seeing an increase in COVID-19 cases and enacted a state of local emergency on Monday. ● Siksika Nation received its first shipment of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, and began immunizing staff and residents at the Siksika Elders Lodge last Friday. National and Regional Updates ● More than 200 doctors have signed an open letter calling on the province to prioritize the vaccination of all health-care workers caring for patients in Alberta’s dedicated COVID-19 wards. ● *Reminder* The entirety of the province of Alberta remains under Enhanced COVID-19 status. C lick here to view the interactive map updated by Alberta Health. *NEW* V accine Rollout Updates This new section of the highlights will cover weekly information updates on the National COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout - note - this section may repeat some information from updates in other sections of the bulletin. Additional priority recipients added to vaccine list: ● As of January 8th, vaccine appointments are offered to health-care workers in medical, surgical and COVID-19 units. ● As of January 11th, paramedics and emergency medical technicians were also added to the vaccine priority list. As of January 12: ● 58,144 doses of COVID-19 have been administered (1,314.9/100k population) ○ 10 adverse events following immunization have been reported to Alberta Health and AHS ● Canada currently has two approved vaccines: ○ Pfizer BionNTech, approved on Dec 9, 2020 ○ Moderna, approved Dec 23, 2020 ● Alberta will be rolling out the vaccine in phases, with timelines subject to change depending on vaccine supply ○ Phase 1A (present) is offered to key populations including ■ Respiratory Therapists ■ Health-care workers in ICUs ■ Staff in long term care and designated supportive living facilities ■ Home care workers ■ Health-care workers in emergency departments ■ All residents of long term care and designated supportive living, regardless of age 2 INFORMATION AND DOCUMENTS FOR FIRST NATIONS *NEW* Additional Federal Funding to Support Indigenous Communities’ COVID-19 Response CPAC Recording of Press conference During a news conference on Parliament Hill, Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller provides an update on the federal government’s response to the COVID-19 (coronavirus disease) pandemic, focusing on its impact on Indigenous communities in Canada and on vaccine distribution in these communities. He is joined by Valerie Gideon (Senior Assistant Deputy Minister, First Nations and Inuit Health Branch, Indigenous Services Canada) and Dr. Tom Wong (Chief Medical Officer of Public Health, Indigenous Services Canada). ● Minister Miller announces an additional $1.2 billion in funding to support the public-health response to COVID-19 in Indigenous communities. ○ As part of this, the federal government is also injecting $380 million into the Indigenous Community Support Fund. ○ $631.6 million over two years for public health response to COVID-19 in Indigenous communities for a variety of uses, PPE, Staff or other. ○ $186.8 million over two years for Supportive Care (LTC and Elder Care facilities) ● In total since March $4.2 billion in support has been announced in Indigenous support for fighting COVID-19. ● As of Jan 12, there are 4,384 active cases on-reserve for a total of 11,502 confirmed cases since March. Numbers on-reserve have now exceeded the national average. *NEW* AFN COVID-19 National Task Force Weekly Update - Jan 11 Attached to this bulletin you will find the weekly C-19 Task Force Update dated Jan 11, 2021 Updates from ISC Alberta Region *NEW* J anuary 13 Bulletin: ISC Alberta Region is sending updates weekly to leadership on the current COVID-19 situation and response. Yesterday’s Bulletin (January 13) is attached. It includes the following information: ● Update to Protocols and Schools ● Vaccination Plans ● Ensuring safe air and surface disinfection products ● OneHealth Reminder ● AHS Vaccine Update Also attached is the call summary for the All Chiefs calls with Dr. Hinshaw on January 5 and 11, 2021. 3 *Reminder* Mental Health Telehealth Session - January 20, 2021 Helping the Helper: Resources and tools to support resilience and mental health for front end workers, o n Wednesday January 20, 10 am - 12 pm To connect to the session: ● via Zoom, go to https://fntn.zoom.us/join and enter Meeting ID: 928 4795 5576 and Passcode: 864150 ● from an audio line, dial 1-587-328-1099 and enter Meeting ID: 928 4795 5576 and Passcode: 864150 ● from a videoconference-enabled room, go to www.fntn.ca t o register Questions can be submitted in advance of or during the presentation to [email protected], or via Zoom during the presentation. National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) - Recommendations on the use of COVID-19 vaccine(s) document The document is now available online at the following link: https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/immunization/national-advisory-committee-on-i mmunization-naci/recommendations-use-covid-19-vaccines.html This is an evergreen document which will be updated with additional information as it becomes available or relevant (e.g. information on Moderna COVID-19 post authorization from Health Canada). CALL & MEETING SUMMARIES *NEW* A ll Chiefs call with Dr.Hinshaw | January 11, 2021 Regional Chief Poitras, along with several Chiefs from each of the three treaty areas joined with ISC Alberta Region, Alberta Health, Alberta Health Services and others to participate on a conference call regarding vaccine rollout updates in the province of Alberta. T he notes from this call are included in the attachments. REGIONAL AND NATIONAL UPDATES Summaries and information of the following can be found in the update below. ● Government of Canada COVID Updates ● Government of Alberta COVID Updates Government of Canada COVID Updates 4 Federal Briefing on the Response to COVID-19 - January 12, 2021 In Ottawa, Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, and Dr. Howard Njoo, deputy chief public health officer, join federal ministers to provide an update on the ongoing COVID-19 (coronavirus disease) pandemic. K ey Highlights: ● Over 668,000 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed including 17,086 deaths, with over 82,500 active cases across the country. Over 8,000 new cases on average are reported daily across the country. ○ 4,500 are hospitalized across the country with approximately 850 in Critical care. ● A Canada Vaccine Distribution tracker is available through the health Canada website here. ● An additional 2 million Pfizer doses are confirmed for Q2, which were originally not going to be available until the third quarter of this year. ○ The federal government remains focused on being able to provide vaccines to any Canadian that wants them prior to the end of September. Government of Alberta COVID Updates CPAC Video: Alberta Update on COVID-19 - January 13, 2021 In Edmonton, Dr.Deena Hinshaw, Alberta’s chief medical officer of health, provides an update on the province’s response to COVID-19. Key Highlights: ● Dr.Hinshaw stated 875 new cases in the last 24 hours, with 16,000 tests putting positivity at 5.3%. There are 820 in hospitals with 137 in the ICU. 23 fatalities were reported in the last 24 hours. ● Questioned on if the federal government has delivered all the doses promised in its rollout, Dr.Hinshaw stated that doses are committed for particular weeks and new shipments are still coming in. ● Asked on case spread for hair salons, personal services, and in-person dining Dr.Hinshaw stated they would not be seen in current trends as due to public health orders they have been closed for many weeks.