Skip to main content
Start of content
Start of content

e-3593 (Health)

E-petition
Initiated by Tracy Casavant from Vancouver, British Columbia

Original language of petition: English

Petition to the Government of Canada

Whereas:
  • Canadians living in every province and territory are at risk during the global SARS-CoV-2 pandemic;
  • Some Canadians have been better protected than others;
  • International experience and Canada's own models indicate this risk will continue for many months; and
  • Insufficient response to COVID-19 within any province or territory could pose a danger to other Canadian residents.
We, the undersigned, citizens and residents of Canada, call upon the Government of Canada to:
1. Deploy whatever resources and means necessary to ensure that Canadian citizens and residents located anywhere in Canada are offered COVID-19 public health and safety response tools, strategies, services, policies, and data collection and analytical methods that meet or exceed comparable guidance issued by the Government of Canada (e.g., deployment of rapid testing technology and of testing for asymptomatic individuals outlined in the Report “Priority strategies to optimize testing and screening for COVID-19 in Canada: Report” (Jan 2021);
2. Consider not only legislative powers, but also the use of federal lands and services, to ensure the COVID-19 response in each province and territory meets or exceeds federal guidance (e.g., rapid test clinics could be established on federal lands in Provinces that are unwilling to set up such services); and
3. Ensure that all provincial health responses reflect the Government of Canada science (e.g., that responses reflect predominantly aerosol transmission pathways with significant asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic transmission events).

Response by the Minister of Health

Signed by (Minister or Parliamentary Secretary): Adam van Koeverden

Our government has taken unprecedented actions to respond to COVID-19 across Canada. Canada’s federal, provincial, and territorial public health officials have responded to a variety of challenges in the ongoing management of COVID-19. Since January 2020, the Federal/Provincial/Territorial Special Advisory Committee on COVID-19, composed of Canada’s Chief Medical Officers of Health, has held more than 200 meetings to facilitate a cohesive pan-Canadian approach to the COVID-19 response based on the latest available scientific evidence.

In responding to COVID-19, public health officials recognize that the epidemiology of the virus varies significantly across regions in Canada, which is reflected in jurisdictional approaches to public health measures. Provinces and territories are responsible for the delivery and administration of healthcare and public health services, including public health surveillance, testing and screening initiatives, public health measures, and vaccine administration. Through the Safe Restart Agreement, the federal government has provided $19 billion to provinces and territories to help them safely restart their economies and prepare for resurgences.

Key responsibilities of the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) include protecting Canadians by coordinating a national public health response with provinces and territories, providing epidemiological and modelling information, preventing the spread of COVID-19 by financing and rolling out vaccines, and supporting a public health-focused border posture. PHAC also plays a key role in promoting science-based information through public communications and public health guidance. While the federal government works collaboratively with the provinces and territories to develop and update national guidance on COVID-19 and to help coordinate the response, the implementation of public health measures in jurisdictions, including testing, rests with provincial and territorial governments to address their own unique circumstances.

Our government remains committed to supporting the provinces and territories with their pandemic response, including through requests for assistance. Federal support has been provided on request to provinces and territories on issues such as contact tracing, testing assistance, testing equipment, laboratory services, outbreak management, voluntary safe isolation sites, and vaccination administration IT programs. When provinces and territories need support, we will be there, and together, we will keep working closely to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Open for signature
October 29, 2021, at 2:33 p.m. (EDT)
Closed for signature
November 28, 2021, at 2:33 p.m. (EDT)
Presented to the House of Commons
Elizabeth May (Saanich—Gulf Islands)
November 30, 2021 (Petition No. 441-00020)
Government response tabled
January 31, 2022
Photo - Elizabeth May
Saanich—Gulf Islands
Green Party Caucus
British Columbia