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Further restrictions not out of the question as COVID-19 cases soar: Shandro

Last Updated Apr 23, 2021 at 4:56 pm MDT

Health Minister Tyler Shandro and Alberta’s chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw provided an update on COVID-19 and the ongoing work to protect public health from Edmonton on June 25, 2020.

EDMONTON – Alberta’s health minister says the United Conservative government is not ruling out further health restrictions due to soaring COVID-19 case numbers.

But Tyler Shandro says they will wait to see the data and any recommendations from Dr. Deena Hinshaw, the province’s chief medical officer of health.

“We don’t have any of those recommendations right now from Dr. Hinshaw, but we will continue to make sure she has all the resources available to her to be able to make the right recommendations to Emergency Management Cabinet Committee,” Shandro said.

Alberta has been reporting a thousand or more new cases of COVID for weeks, and total active cases are now over 19-thousand.

RELATED: Alberta identifies 1,690 COVID-19 cases, five additional deaths

Opposition NDP Leader Rachel Notley is wondering what the government is waiting for.

She says the numbers already show that action on further restrictions is needed.

Notley says Premier Jason Kenney is reluctant to act because he is trying to keep his UCP caucus from fracturing.

There are 17 members of Kenney’s caucus already speaking out against the existing health restrictions as an unnecessary violation of civil liberties.