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You are here: Home / Featured / As a Halifax-area woman becomes the 59th Nova Scotian to die with COVID-19, the premier hints all businesses will be allowed to reopen in “early June”

As a Halifax-area woman becomes the 59th Nova Scotian to die with COVID-19, the premier hints all businesses will be allowed to reopen in “early June”

May 26, 2020 By Jennifer Henderson Leave a Comment

Premier Stephen McNeil and Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Robert Strang at the COVID-19 briefing, Tuesday, May 26, 2020. Photo: Communications Nova Scotia

The Halifax Examiner is providing all COVID-19 coverage for free.

A woman in her 80s who had an underlying medical condition has died after contracting the COVID-19 virus. She was a resident of the HRM but not a resident of Northwood or any other long-term care home.

The news came at today’s daily briefing by Dr. Robert Strang, the Province’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, and Premier Stephen McNeil. Two new cases of COVID-19 were reported, at least one at Northwood, where there remain 15 active cases among staff and residents. The latest case involved a worker and Strang acknowledges Northwood is still in “outbreak” mode; 52 of the 59 COVID-related deaths in Nova Scotia were residents of Northwood.

Seven Nova Scotians with the virus are currently in hospital, three of those in ICU. Nine hundred and seventy-six people have now recovered; a total of 1,052 people tested positive. The lab did over 500 tests yesterday and the premier claims on a per capita basis, Nova Scotia is doing the second-highest number of tests among all provinces.

McNeil says he will tell Nova Scotians later this week when businesses ordered to shut down because of COVID-19 will be permitted to reopen.  He said licensed daycares are “on track” to resume operations June 8. The premier hinted the opening date for all businesses will be “sometime in early June.” Meanwhile, he announced a new government website called “Preparing to Reopen Nova Scotia.”  This “how to” website will contain information and guidelines to permit safe physical distancing for numerous types of businesses, including gyms, restaurants, barber shops, physio clinics, dental offices, and others.

“I know we are moving more slowly than other provinces but as Dr. Strang and I have said, this is not a race,” said McNeil. “Other provinces have opened parts of their economy and have either had to close up again or delay the rest of their opening plan because their cases of COVID continued to rise. We may end up with a similar problem but it won’t be because we went too fast, too soon…the last thing I want to do is to have to close down our economy again because we rushed to reopen. We will follow the advice of Public Health.”

Reporters asked Strang when nursing homes in the province — which have been closed to family visitors since March 8 — could be allowed to let residents share an outdoor visit with a family member at a two-meter distance. Temperatures are expected to soar to the high 20s over the next few days. It has been several weeks since any home other than Northwood and one unnamed facility has reported a single case of the virus.

Family members of long-term care residents have expressed concerns residents could be losing the will to live unless some type of personal contact can be restored. Strang responded by saying he had “begun” discussions this morning with the Department of Health and Wellness which is responsible for monitoring nursing homes.

“It would be premature to guess at where we are going to land in terms of a timeframe,” said Dr.Strang. “Fully recognizing the importance of the social interaction for residents in connection with their families. Knowing at the same time we have to maintain a high level of vigilance and safety to protect these people. We need to think our way through this, carefully, so that we balance the different risks.”


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Filed Under: Featured, News, Province House

About Jennifer Henderson

Jennifer Henderson is a freelance journalist and retired CBC News reporter. email: [email protected]

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The Tideline, with Tara Thorne

Phyllis Rising — Rebecca Falvey (left) and Meg Hubley. Photo submitted

Episode #19 of The Tideline, with Tara Thorne is published.

Meg Hubley and Rebecca Falvey met as theatre kids at Neptune and have been friends ever since. As Phyllis Rising — that’s right, Mary Tyler Moore hive — they’re making films, plays, and are in production on The Crevice, a three-part sitcom streaming live from the Bus Stop in March. They stop by to talk with Tara about its development, their shared love of classic SNL and 90s sitcoms, and the power of close friendship. Plus: A new song from a new band.

This episode is available today only for premium subscribers; to become a premium subscriber, click here, and join the select group of arts and entertainment supporters for just $5/month. Everyone else will have to wait until tomorrow to listen to it.

Please subscribe to The Tideline.

Uncover: Dead Wrong

In 1995, Brenda Way was brutally murdered behind a Dartmouth apartment building. In 1999, Glen Assoun was found guilty of the murder. He served 17 years in prison, but steadfastly maintained his innocence. In 2019, Glen Assoun was fully exonerated.

Halifax Examiner founder and investigative journalist Tim Bousquet has followed the story of Glen Assoun's wrongful conviction for over five years. Now, Bousquet tells that story as host of Season 7 of the CBC podcast series Uncover: Dead Wrong.

Click here to go to listen to the podcast, or search for CBC Uncover on Apple podcasts, Spotify, or any other podcast aggregator.

About the Halifax Examiner

Examiner folk The Halifax Examiner was founded by investigative reporter Tim Bousquet, and now includes a growing collection of writers, contributors, and staff. Left to right: Joan Baxter, Stephen Kimber, Linda Pannozzo, Erica Butler, Jennifer Henderson, Iris the Amazing, Tim Bousquet, Evelyn C. White, El Jones, Philip Moscovitch More about the Examiner.

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