B.C. Health Minister defends Dr. Bonnie Henry in legislature over response to COVID-19 transmission in schools
CBC
B.C.'s Health Minister defended Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry in the legislature on Tuesday, after the leader of the B.C. Green Party said British Columbians have been misled about COVID-19 transmissions in schools.
Sonia Furstenau questioned Adrian Dix about emails from Henry and public health leaders centred on the province's response to COVID-19 transmission in schools, obtained through the Freedom of Information Act and published by the Burnaby Beacon and Capital Daily.
Furstenau highlighted a December 2020 email written by Henry ahead of a press briefing asking health officials for data that indicated transmission in schools was low.
"Could you please give me some of the stats from your school assessments for the media brief today," Henry wrote, according to the Beacon report. "We need to be able to give some data that supports what we keep saying transmission in schools is low."
At the press briefing, Henry said "the data shows us that we are not seeing schools as a place where transmission is spreading widely."
Furstenau suggested the emails show Henry was searching for information to fit a narrative.
"She then told the public, over and over again, that transmission in schools was low, denying the reality that teachers and parents were experiencing in their real lives — over and over again, gaslighting," Furstenau said during question period on Tuesday.
According to the Beacon report, Dr. Richard Stanwick, then chief medical health officer with Island Health, wrote to Henry in April 2021 warning of a spike in school exposures on Vancouver Island.
Dix said the email was about how COVID cases during spring break were rising, as it had during winter breaks.
"In other words, transmission was less during school than it was during break periods," he said.
Dix said Stanwick recommended the public be reminded to stay at home when they're sick, something the province has consistently recommended.
Dix accused Furstenau of conflating Stanwick's email and Henry's email, which were written months apart.
"Dr. Henry has consistently provided her best advice, and the suggestion that she did otherwise is simply incorrect," Dix said.
"Does that mean that she's right every single time? Of course not. This has been an evolving pandemic that has challenged health officers everywhere in the world."
WARNING: This story details allegations of child abuse.
It’s been hard to keep track of how many legal challenges and active court proceedings the United Conservative government has tried to quash or pre-emptively block in the last six weeks, but let’s try to tally:
Margaret Walker, the emcee of a Waterloo vigil commemorating the victims of the Montreal massacre, doesn't feel enough is being done to reflect on the killings and address gender-based violence.
The P.E.I. Humane Society says it is doing far more fundraising than it used to, and rising expenses — including the cost of animal medications — are a big reason why.
Ottawa is staring down a court-ordered deadline to submit a new plan to reform the on-reserve child welfare system, as a group of First Nations leaders and children’s advocates prepare a competing proposal.
An underpass revitalization project that was meant to pay tribute to the people of Parkdale has instead deteriorated into “a garbage dump,” according to nearby residents.
A young man has been charged with criminal negligence causing bodily harm after a fire at a frat party near Western University that injured five sorority sisters, including two seriously, late Tuesday night.
The massive deal to combine one of Hollywood's oldest studios with a streaming giant hasn't even been approved yet, but it's already riling multiple related industries and politicians concerned about monopolies and media concentration.
Mi'kmaq chiefs and a former Nova Scotia justice minister are criticizing the provincial government for directing police to crack down on illegal cannabis, saying the order undermines relations with Indigenous Peoples.
For years, there has been “glaring inequity” in the way the province has allocated the millions of dollars in its county roads budget, according to Department of Transportation Minister Chuck Chiasson.
Six months after passing a law aimed at making it easier for new grocery stores to open, Manitoba's premier says lower grocery bills could be on the horizon.
Timothy Smith was acting in self-defence when he punched Landon Waddell, and shouldn't be found guilty of manslaughter, his lawyer says.
Thoroughbred horse racing at Vancouver’s Hastings Racecourse is ending after more than a century, with the operator announcing Friday it will no longer run a racing season at the historic facility.