The official opposition called for action from the Saskatchewan government to stop the spread of the COVID-19 variants of concern and Tuesday afternoon the province announced a temporary circuit breaker in the Regina area.
NDP Leader Ryan Meili says the Premier announced relaxing the public health restrictions earlier this month, even though Scott Moe had seen the modelling from the Saskatchewan Health Authority which painted the picture of up to 120 people in ICUs by the end of May if the measures weren’t tightened, allowing the variants, in particular, to spread.
Meili says these variants are more transmissible, they can make people sicker and they are affecting more young people.
He adds that the modelling wasn’t shared with the public, so he believes the government wasn’t being transparent.
The NDP is also urging the province to call for circuit breakers in other areas of the province if there is an outbreak of the variants in other communities.
Meili says, “Regina is not an island and it is very possible the variants will begin to spread more quickly, and soon.”