We asked the question to all regional public health directorates in Quebec in regions where more than 5,000 cases have been reported since the start of the pandemic. All the answers point in the same direction. It is not a given that we have
, it is not listed
, it is not collected in this form
, our data does not allow us to know this percentage
, answer the regions of Laval, Mauricie, Nord-de-Montréal and Lanaudière.
The ciussu de la Capitale-Nationale suggests that it would be possible to assess the percentage of cases generated by outdoor gatherings, but that this would involve rereading all the surveys in order to check whether a person has actually participated in an outside activity with his index case
.
The Institut de la santé publique du Québec (INSPQ) notes for its part that few studies have documented the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in the external environment
whether in Canada or elsewhere. TheINSPQ emphasizes that the risk of transmission outside is conditioned by factors similar to what is observed inside, namely the proximity between people and the duration of contact.
Parks were packed in Montreal on Sunday and few people wore the mask (archive).
Photo: Radio-Canada
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Why make it mandatory in Quebec?
We have no controlled study. We did not do any tests outside
, admits at the outset the national director of public health, Dr. Horacio Arruda.
Out of prudence and with what can be seen in the many gatherings in the parks, public health has nevertheless decided to recommend wearing a mask for all outdoor activities when people are not from the same family bubble. The more contagious nature of the COVID-19 variants is one of the main reasons for this decision.
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Dr Horacio Arruda justifies the decision to impose the mask outside.
Photo: Radio-Canada
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It’s too easy to get close. You only have to see how people behave in the street to understand the reason for adding this element from the perspective of the variant.
<q data-attributes="{"lang":{"value":"fr","label":"Français"},"value":{"html":"Compte tenu de la très grande transmissibilité des variants, compte tenu du fait qu'à l'extérieur à moins de deuxmeters, there are still particles, this recommendation was retained by our experts by consensus “,” text “:” Taking into account the very great transmissibility of the variants, taking into account the fact that outside at less than two meters, there are still particles, this recommendation was retained by our experts by consensus “}}” lang = “fr”>Given the very high transmissibility of the variants, given the fact that outside at less than two meters, there are still particles, this recommendation was adopted by our experts by consensus., adds Dr Arruda.
The Department of Health and Social Services specifies that external transmission is very difficult to assess. Spokeswoman Noémie Vanheuverzwijn gives the example of a student who contracts COVID-19 in her school environment. Did the transmission take place in the classroom or during recess in the schoolyard?
I did not know
In the last few days, Prime Minister François Legault has been criticized by opposition parties for failing to talk about the wearing of the compulsory mask outside during his press briefing last Thursday.
The information was conveyed in a press release only after the end of the press briefing, so the Prime Minister was not questioned on the subject either. I did not know
, he admitted on Tuesday.
The Legault government has established two exceptions where the mask can be left out. It is possible to remove the mask when all the members of the group are seated and motionless more than two meters from each other, for a picnic for example.
The mask is not mandatory either for people who are only accompanied by members of their family bubble.
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