Alberta asks feds for help transferring ICU patients out of province
Alberta has asked the federal government for help transporting critically ill patients out of the province for care and bringing in ICU staff, registered nurses and respiratory therapists.
Municipal Affairs Minister Ric McIver made the request in a letter to Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair on Tuesday, asking for an immediate meeting.
In his letter, McIver outlines that the province has enacted a state of public health emergency and has "actioned a series of steps to relieve pressure on our health care system."
Those steps include a contingency plan to transfer patients out of the province for care and bring while bringing in specialists.
"Federal assistance in these two areas has the potential to create significant relief to the health care system," it read.
Blair said on social media soon after that the request would be approved.
"Federal officials have been engaging their counterparts in Alberta for the past week to offer help," he said. "I have made it clear that when a request is received, it will be approved. We will work together to provide for the people across Alberta."
Premier Jason Kenney is expected to announce a cabinet shuffle Tuesday afternoon, which sources have told CTV News will include removing Tyler Shandro as health minister.
NDP Health Critic David Shepherd issued a statement Tuesday afternoon, saying "Albertans should be appalled" McIver waited until after the federal election to make the ask.
“Alberta’s frontline healthcare workers need all the help they can get as they struggle with the emergency created by the UCP’s failure to act for months while this crisis escalated. I hope the federal government is able to provide resources to relieve some of this excruciating pressure," said Shepherd.
“Albertans should be appalled that Ric McIver waited until after the federal election to make this call to Ottawa. Once again, the UCP is focused on politics instead of the terrible price that Albertans are paying right now, with record ICU admissions and thousands of life-saving surgeries cancelled. It’s disgustingly cynical.”
Ontario Health Minister Christine Elliott has earlier said that province will help Alberta manage its overwhelmed intensive care units (ICUs), which have been inundated with COVID-19 patients.
Alberta added more than 4,600 new cases of COVID-19 over the weekend as hospitalizations rose to a record high.
Monday's update included data from Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The province reported 4,633 new cases over that three-day span.
The number of COVID-19 patients in Alberta hospitals rose to 954, the highest count of the pandemic to date. That figure includes 216 patients in intensive care units, the third most to date.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Most of Canada to receive emergency alert test today
The federal government will test its capacity to issue emergency alerts today, with the exception of Ontario, where the test will take place on May 15.
'A huge difference': These adults born in the '90s partnered with their parents to buy homes in Ontario
An Ontario woman said it would have been impossible to buy a house without her mother – an anecdote that animates the fact that over 17 per cent of Canadian homeowners born in the ‘90s own their property with their parents, according to a new report.
OPINION No reunion between Prince Harry and the King signifies a setback for royal unity
Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, has made headlines with his recent arrival in the U.K., this time to celebrate all things Invictus. But upon the prince landing in the U.K., we have already had confirmation that King Charles III won't have time to see his youngest son during his brief visit.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
How Drake and Kendrick Lamar's rap beef escalated within weeks
A long-simmering feud between hip-hop superstars Drake and Kendrick Lamar reached a boiling point in recent days as the pair traded increasingly personal insults on a succession of diss tracks. Here’s a quick overview of what’s behind the ongoing beef.
NEW For their protection, immigrants critical of China and India call for speedy passage of Canada's foreign interference legislation
Canadian immigrants threatened by hostile regimes are urging parliamentarians to quickly pass the 'Countering Foreign Interference Act' so they can feel safe living in their adopted home.
Ontario man devastated to learn $150,000 line of credit isn't insured after wife dies
An Ontario man found out that a line of credit he thought was insured actually isn't after his wife of 50 years died.
Spanish prosecutors recommend 2nd investigation into Shakira's taxes be thrown out
Spanish state prosecutors recommended Wednesday that an investigating judge shelve a probe into another alleged case of tax fraud by pop star Shakira.
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.