Sixth COVID wave inevitable, says doctor, citing concerns over travel testing changes

Despite the lifting of some pandemic travel regulations, health care professionals are still very worried about what COVID-19 has in store for us.

Many experts have said that provinces are either in the sixth wave of the pandemic or approaching one.

Dr. Kenneth Fung, a clinical professor in the Faculty of Medicine at UBC, is among those who believe it’s inevitable.

“Because the variant BA.2, is already in Canada — we just couldn’t find it because rapid tests cannot really test it, and the government is not doing much of the PCR test. Even some of the PCR tests cannot identify BA.2 on the first instance, they have to further evaluate whether it is a true variant or not,” he explained.

Canada’s top doctor also notes COVID-19 is still circulating widely and that the risk of resurgence remains.

“We’re now in a period of transition and we anticipate that progress will not be linear,” Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam said. “There will likely be more bumps along the way, including resurgence in cases this spring, and likely also in the fall and winter.”

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According to the World Health Organization, BA.2 is a sublineage of the Omicron variant.

In February, the WHO said that available data at the time suggested BA.2 should continue to be considered a variant of concern and that “it should remain classified as Omicron.”

“The group emphasized that BA.2 should continue to be monitored as a distinct sublineage of Omicron by public health authorities,” the WHO added, noting the Omicron variant was the dominant variant circulating the globe.

Dr. Tam says Canada is observing a steady increase in BA.2 and that ongoing genomic surveillance will remain crucial for monitoring variants of concern.

However, testing levels across the country are vastly different than what they were just months ago, with many provinces providing people with rapid tests more than they are performing PCRs.

Changes to testing have also taken place federally, with fully vaccinated travellers no longer required to show proof of a pre-entry test prior to landing in Canada as of April 1.

Fung says that won’t help.

“The fact that people are fully vaccinated does not mean they are not a carrier. They can be fully vaccinated and carry the new variant from within Canada, from the United States, from Europe, from Asia. So we’re lifting all these travel restrictions but the variant is coming, that’s for sure,” he told OMNI News.

He believes current testing methods are “useless,” adding people are free to rapid test if they feel unwell and aren’t forced to report those results to health authorities.

“There’s no real calculation, statistics, collecting how bad, how widespread the infection is. So testing today is, I hate to say, totally useless,” Fung added.

He is also concerned about the slow rate of vaccination of kids aged five to 11, even though there are shots available.

Tam is encouraging Canadians to ensure their vaccinations are up to date and telling people to continue using protective measures, like masks.

She said higher population immunity and proven measures that slow the spread mean Canadians are now in a better position to live with the virus.

The National Advisory Committee on Immunization is working on a guidance on fourth doses of COVID-19 vaccine.

The Public Health Agency of Canada has said it expects to publish NACI’s advice on a fourth dose booster in the coming days.