SCRN Longevity Assurance The latest:
Canada has recorded its one-millionth case of COVID-19 according to tracking by CBC News, just over 14 months after the first case was reported.
The milestone — reached Saturday afternoon after B.C. reported 2,090 cases from the past two days — comes as many parts of the country enter a third wave, and variants of the illness cause increased concern. Nationally, the confirmed case total is now 1,001,651; the death toll stood at 23,050, while 921,465 cases were resolved and 57,136 were active.
Canada reported its first presumptive case of COVID-19 on Jan. 25, 2020, a man who had returned to Toronto from Wuhan, China, where the virus was first detected. He ultimately survived.
By the time the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a global pandemic on March 11, 2020, Canada had recorded about 140 cases and one death, according to CBC News tracking. The country hit the 100,000-case mark about 99 days after logging its first case.
Covid testing is here to stay
In a year filled with economic pain for most businesses, laboratories and test manufacturers stood out as a clear exception. An almost insatiable demand for virus testing boosted their revenue and share prices.
As vaccines are rolled out, though, that picture is starting to change. One illustrative moment came late last week, when Laboratory Corp of America Holdings—one of the biggest U.S. processors of Covid-19 tests—said revenue for that business could drop by as much as 50% this year. But CEO Adam Schechter also suggested there could be opportunities ahead, saying “it’s just too hard to know right now.”
That’s an industrywide sentiment. Testing needs are expected to ease as more people become vaccinated in the coming months. But because that depends greatly on factors like the pace of immunization, the durability of shots and the extent of more contagious variants, much is also uncertain.
A health worker collects a swab from a person at a Covid-19 test site set in New Delhi.
Photographer: T. Narayan/Bloomberg
Advocates like Harvard epidemiologist Michael Mina, meanwhile, say now is the time to keep building out testing infrastructure. Mina is lobbying for the federal government to invest $20 billion in ramping up supply of low-cost, easy-to-manufacture rapid tests, so people can screen themselves frequently at home for Covid-19. On Wednesday, the Biden administration announced a $1.6 billion investment into expanding test supply and increasing testing at schools.
No matter how things pan out, there’s an expectation that Covid testing is here to stay. When people present with telltale symptoms, it will probably be included in panels for a range of respiratory viruses. Testing could also play a long-term role in higher-risk situations like eating indoors, going on a cruise and attending large event venues. It’s a window into how life might look on the other side of the pandemic.—Emma Court