|
New Restrictions
This has been a difficult week with the recent COVID-19 outbreak and the arrival of the Omicron variant in our province. To protect Nova Scotians and our health system, Public Health has once again implemented physical distancing and gathering limits beginning today, Friday, December 17th.
Lasting until at least the new year, a physical distance of two metres (six feet) is required indoors and outdoors, except among people in the same household or a consistent social group of up to 20 people. New restrictions have been placed in long-term care facilities, schools, recreation and event venues, and Disability Support Program homes.
|
|
All close contacts, including those who are fully vaccinated, now need to isolate for 72 hours after the exposure and then get a lab-based (PCR) test. Those who are fully vaccinated can stop isolating after receiving a negative lab test. Those not fully vaccinated must continue to isolate, following the instructions for close contacts who are not fully vaccinated, found at nshealth.ca.
It is important that anyone who tests positive with a rapid test self-isolates immediately and gets a PCR test, regardless of vaccination status. If the PCR test is negative, they can stop isolating if they have no symptoms and are fully vaccinated.
There is no change in the requirement for proof of full vaccination for discretionary activities.
These will be in place at least until the new year, but we know that, depending on the epidemiology, that could be extended.
We have seen the impact of vaccines in this wave of COVID-19; with daily new case numbers in the 100s in Nova Scotia, so far our healthcare system remains relatively intact, although strained. Those who are vaccinated are recovering. Still, with the increase in transmissibility of the Omicron variant rising case counts will continue to have an impact on our daily lives and our healthcare system.
Please, get tested. Get testing kits. Get vaccinated. It works.
Support for Small Business
The Sector Impact Support Program will provide a one-time grant of up to $7,500 to help small business owners in industries such as restaurants, bars, gyms, live performing arts facilities and recreation facilities. Applications will open in early January.
Organic Childcare
Today is the last day of school in Nova Scotia. In the last two weeks, four extra days of school holidays were announced with no warning to parents and guardians. I'm glad that the Province has announced that Learning Centres will remain open, but these centres accommodate only a few children in each school. Once again we see an unconscionable reliance on "organic childcare" by the Province. I have spoken about this many times before, most recently during Public Accounts Committee where we learned that providing childcare for essential workers was never even considered.
Yes, we need to keep each other safe. Unfortunately, our decision-makers continue to make decisions with punishing impacts for families, women in particular, with seemingly no consideration. Families who need and can find childcare will have real, unplanned expenses. Businesses will be impacted by workers unable to come to work. Teachers, nurses, ECEs, CCAs all mostly women will be expected to work—but what about their children? We need to be having a different conversation about how to keep each other safe that acknowledges the challenges engendered by government decisions.
Housing
On February 1st, 2022, changes to the rules for tenants and landlords regarding the rent cap, renovictions, and more will come into effect.
Housing is a human right. Right now, as the snow falls, we know there are dozens of people sleeping outdoors. The shelters are full and turning people away. We see many of them in our office and at this point, there is very little we can do to help. Our first priority is to ensure that everyone in our community has a warm and safe place to sleep.
Rent Cap
The 2% rent cap will be in place until 31 December 2023. The rent cap will apply to those who currently have a residential lease (apartment or house) and tenants who are in a fixed-term lease who are signing another fixed-term lease for the same unit. Any additional cost to a tenant for services originally included in the lease (such as parking) or removal of a service that increases rental costs to a tenant (such as requiring a tenant to pay for electricity when it was originally included in the rent) is considered a rental increase. Proper notice must be given to the tenant and the additional cost must be within the 2% rent cap.
This temporary cap is to allow the Province to build more affordable units, and for the market to stabilize. We need to see much greater investment in non-market housing, the use of the new inclusionary zoning power by HRM, and significantly greater efforts on this file to make a dent. I will be watching this file closely.
Renovictions
Following the initial ban on renovations, the rules around have now been updated. They are legal, but a landlord must give tenants a minimum of three months' notice and must give between 1 and 3-months' rent as compensation for the eviction. If a tenant resides in a building with 4 units or less, they will be owed 1 month of rent; and if they reside in a building with more than 4 units, they will be owed 3 months rent.
- Mutual agreements between tenants and landlords to end a lease due to a renoviction must be in writing using the designated form. The form will be available on the Residential Tenancies Program webpage or at Access Nova Scotia Centres on February 1, 2022.
- If a tenant does not agree to end the tenancy, landlords must apply under the Residential Tenancies Program for an eviction order.
- Landlords who don’t follow the new rules may have to provide additional compensation for tenants such as covering moving expenses and/or paying the difference between the tenant’s new and old rent amount, for up to one year.
Additionally:
- Rental increase notices can only contain one increase amount. For example, landlords are only allowed to give one increase amount regardless of if the tenant decides to renew a year-to-year lease or go month-to-month.
- Landlords can’t charge different rental rates for different lease terms. For example, year-to-year vs. month-to-month leases.
- Effective dates for rental increase notices will no longer be tied to an anniversary date. Meaning, a landlord doesn’t have to apply a rental increase on the anniversary date of when the tenant signed their lease and could choose a later date instead. All other existing rental increase requirements remain in place including that landlords can only increase rent once a year.
- When a tenant’s dispute of a rental eviction notice is dismissed, an eviction order can be issued.
- Landlords must provide a 24-hour written notice to enter tenants’ units unless the tenant gives permission or there is an emergency.
Seniors
We saw some very positive movement on the seniors' file over the last couple of weeks. The Province announced $57 million " to support those working in continuing care." Investments include funding earmarked to cover 100% of tuition costs for over 2,000 students in continuing care assistant programs, to provide long-term care homes with funding to offer their casual and part-time employees full-time positions or to hire more staff to provide direct care, hire temporary staff through employment agencies, tuition rebates for current continuing care assistant students, recruitment, staff support, make more beds available, and more.
Unfortunately, there was no funding for an increased rate of pay, which we know is one of the leading reasons for high turnover along with poor working conditions. To be clear: if you do not make a living wage, you cannot afford to live in this province. |
|
A reminder also about the Seniors Care Grant I included in my last newsletter, which helps low-income seniors with the cost of household services (like snow removal, grocery delivery, lawn care and small home repairs). Grants are up to $500 for each household. Applications are available online or at my office. Call us at 902-406-2301 if you would like a paper application. |
|
|
Vaccines
The Province has accepted all of the new booster recommendations announced on December 3 by the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI):
- expand eligibility for a booster dose to include people who are 60 and older and then work backward in descending age groups
- allow all frontline healthcare workers, including community providers like dentists and pharmacists, to schedule a booster dose regardless of the interval between their first two doses
- increase the minimum interval between first and second doses from 28 days to eight weeks; any second dose appointments currently scheduled on a 28-day interval will be honoured.
Implementation dates to follow.
Some people at greater risk of severe infection are already eligible for more than two doses. People who are 70 and older should get a booster dose and people who are immunocompromised should get a third primary series dose. Anyone who is immunocompromised will also become eligible for a booster dose 168 days after their third dose.
The Province will also make viral vector vaccines available this month for people who cannot, or choose not to get vaccinated with an mRNA vaccine. There will be limited doses of Janssen vaccine available at select clinics next week. Appointments can be booked online. A shipment of AstraZeneca vaccine is also expected later this month and information about where it will be offered will be released when available.
People who choose to receive a viral vector vaccine should be aware that:
- they must be 18 or older to receive one of these vaccines
- these vaccines are less effective than mRNA vaccines
- there are no viral vector booster doses at this time; booster doses must be an mRNA vaccine
- there is a risk of a serious but rare blood clotting disorder - vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT) - up to six weeks after vaccination.
NACI also recommends that people under age 30 receive the Pfizer vaccine because the rare risk of myocarditis and pericarditis associated with mRNA vaccines appears more common after Moderna than Pfizer vaccine. Nova Scotia has not made Moderna available to people 17 and under. Anyone 18 to 29 in Nova Scotia is strongly encouraged to receive the Pfizer vaccine for their first, second or booster doses.
Everyone over the age of 5 is eligible for vaccination.
VirtualCareNS
People in central and eastern Nova Scotia who are on the Need a Family Practice Registry will start receiving invitations for VirtualCareNS next week. During VirtualCareNS appointments, primary-care providers can prescribe medications, order tests and make referrals for specialized care. If a patient's health concerns can't be resolved virtually, they will be provided with options for in-person care. VirtualCareNS is already available in the Northern and Western health zones.
Beginning Monday, December 13, Nova Scotia Health will be contacting people who live in Central and Eastern zones by email, starting in communities with the largest number of people on the registry. People who have been on the registry the longest will be contacted first. Anyone who wants to update their email address on file can call 811 to do so. More details can be found here.
As always, there is a lot to digest these days. Nova Scotia reached the 1 million population milestone this week. We are growing, we will continue to grow, and the issues I've spoken about in this and previous newsletters will continue to be top of mind in 2022.
I'm wishing you all a happy and healthy holiday season and don't hesitate to reach out to our office if you have questions or concerns. We are closed to in-person meetings, but are available by phone (902-406-2301) and virtually (claudiachendermla@gmail.com).
Best,
Claudia
|
|
|
Travelling During the Holidays
|
|
|
It is your responsibility to understand your role in mitigating the spread of COVID-19 and its variants when you travel. We all need to do our part to keep one another safe. If you are travelling this holiday season, be sure to review your responsibilities by exploring the links below.
Nova Scotia and inter-provincial travel restrictions can be found at novascotia.ca/coronavirus/travel.
International travel restrictions can be found at travel.gc.ca/travel-covid.
If you become aware of someone not following guidelines, you can speak to them directly and see if they need assistance with compliance. Alternatively, you can report non-compliance by calling police non-emergency. See the full details at novascotia.ca/coronavirus/restrictions-and-guidance/#enforcement.
|
|
The Voyage Home
An animated window display by LoHiFi. Musical score by Brad Conrad.
Come see the whales in motion at 122 Portland St. Dartmouth until January 1st.
|
|
|
Equipment Loan Share and Discussion
The NS Outdoor Network is putting on a virtual Equipment Loan Share and Discussion on January 19th, 2022 from 10am – 11:30am! If you offer equipment loans they want to hear from you. Equipment for loan could include bikes, adaptive equipment, snowshoes, outdoor play equipment, hiking packs and more. Join the discussion and register now: http://ow.ly/eUkM50H8s0P
|
|
|
Support Dartmouth Businesses
Restrictions around social distancing and gathering limits go into effect on Friday. This is necessary for Nova Scotians to stay safe during the current outbreak, but it is also having a huge effect on our small businesses and their staff (especially in the restaurant industry) at a crucial time of year. If you can, please support Dartmouth's small businesses.
|
|
|
Shop local, get gift cards, and order takeout.
Pick up your order curbside rather than using third-party delivery services.
Write a positive review on Facebook, Google, Yelp, etc.
Tell three people about three businesses you think they would like.
Follow, like, save, share, and comment on their social media posts and contests.
|
|
|
|
|
