Global National: Dec. 13, 2020 | First doses of Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine arrive in Canada

Today is the day the first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine are slated to arrive in Canada A pivotal point in this pandemic. The first batch of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, 30,000 doses, will be divided between 14 distribution sites across the country. Each jurisdiction has decided who will get the vaccine first, which includes frontline health-care workers and long-term care residents. Shots could be administered as early as Monday. It’s what everyone has been waiting for, but some provinces are still struggling to bring down the number of new infections.

Alberta recorded its deadliest day of the pandemic with 22 lives lost and more than 1,700 new infections reported in that province. Alberta has more than a quarter of Canada’s active cases despite having only 12 per cent of the country’s population. And that has forced the government to implement new restrictions. As Heather Yourex-West explains, hospitals can still expect an increasing number of patients and families can expect to see more loved ones die.

Ontario is set to begin its first round of COVID-19 vaccinations on Tuesday, but there are still not enough doses to go around to everyone. It will be months before the true scope of this national vaccination plan will be realized. That has health experts and politicians warning Canadians not to let their guard down. Morganne Campbell reports.

The first doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine in the U.S. rolled out of a plant in Michigan this morning headed to healthcare workers across the country, but it could be months before they’re all vaccinated. The numbers in the U.S. are overwhelming with an average of 208,000 cases per day over the past week. As Jennifer Johnson reports, Operation Warp Speed can’t move fast enough.

Besides COVID-19, Alberta has the highest rate of syphilis in Canada. Now researchers at the University of Alberta are trying a strategy, it’s a two-for-one test that also looks for HIV. As Su-Ling Goh reports, the results only take five minutes so the patient can get treatment sooner.

Cape Breton, Nova Scotia is feeling cut off. There are no commercial flights going to or from the island. The region is home to a major university and 60 per cent of its student population comes from abroad. Tonight, there are concerns that number will take a nose dive to a lack of air transportation. Ross Lord reports.

Despite the introduction of COVID-19 rapid tests at some airports and the prospects of vaccines, air travel is still floundering. Airlines say they will lose $200 billion in 2020 and 2021. Business travel is a key component of the losses. Microsoft founder Bill Gates predicts corporate travel will never return to pre-pandemic levels. Redmond Shannon explains how that could make air travel more expensive for all of us.

Many businesses are getting hit hard in the pandemic, especially in what should be a lucrative holiday season. But the Christmas tree season is somehow booming across North America. It’s performing so well that it’s outperforming last year’s numbers. So what’s behind the growing demand? Mike Drolet explains.

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