If history is any indication, the Path Forward to easing restrictions in the province will likely not be linear.
Answering to a growing sense of frustration from individuals and business owners over the indefinite timelines of COVID-19 restrictions, Premier Jason Kenney announced his comprehensive Path Forward plan at a Jan. 29 press conference.
The gradual plan has clear benchmarks for hospitalizations at 600, 450, 300 and 150 for when the Province can move from one step of reopening to another.
Additionally, each step will be a minimum of three weeks so the decision makers have the time and data to make informed decisions.
Given some of the criticism the government has faced for not giving clear direction on why certain decisions were made or for not providing sufficient data for decisions on which industries are hit by restrictions, the Path Forward represents a step forward in terms of clarity and communication.
Premier Kenney also cautioned that should hospitalizations rise, the Province will step in and have to re-introduce measures.
As much as it’s a step-by-step plan, there’s no guarantee that it will go in one direction.
We’re seeing a shortage of vaccine supply and we’re also now hearing more and more about the highly contagious variants of COVID being found in the province.
There’s a chance that businesses will have to react to re-opening and closures as the hospitalization figures change.
The restrictions in place since December look to have brought the hospitalization, ICU and active cases down and some might say why fix a system that’s working?
But, there’s no perfect solution to this crisis and that’s why we’re hearing a lot about balancing competing factors and we shouldn’t expect that conversation to change anytime soon.
