Random COVID-19 testing at Canada’s border forcing uninfected travellers to quarantine
Global News
Random testing at the border doesn’t give a clear picture of who has COVID-19 when entering Canada, but it is forcing some healthy travellers to quarantine.
Random testing at Canada’s border can’t distinguish between people who previously had COVID-19 and those currently infected by it, according to a statement from the government received by Global News.
The mandatory measure, which affects roughly 1 in 20 fully vaccinated travellers entering Canada, is also leading to healthy travellers being forced to quarantine.
The tests being used — PCR or molecular tests — are too sensitive to tell the difference between active infections and previous infections.
Still, the government insists on using these tests because it says they’re the “gold standard” for detecting the virus, even if they may be catching people who fully recovered from it.
“You’re shooting at a dartboard with a blindfold on,” said Colin Furness, an infectious disease specialist and epidemiologist at the University of Toronto.
“I want us to do disease surveillance. I want us to do transmission control … but I don’t think their current plan is actually particularly effective at either of those things.”
Mandatory random testing of fully vaccinated travellers began in late 2021 to help monitor the spread of new variants entering Canada and to make sure infected travellers quarantined.
Roughly 5,000 people are selected each day, according to the government. Tests are performed by a handful of private companies who have received hundreds of millions of dollars in government contracts since the start of the pandemic.