In a news release issued on Nov. 13, the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) announced that it will no longer be issuing public service announcements advising residents to self-monitor due to potential COVID-19 exposures.
Beginning today, the SHA will instead only be issuing COVID-19 notices when self-isolation is required after a potential exposure at a business or in other locations in a community.
“COVID-19 is everywhere in Saskatchewan,” the SHA new release stated. “Medical health officers are asking all Saskatchewan residents to self-monitor for COVID symptoms, regardless of where you live in the province.”
The new PSAs will be issued by medical health officers to inform individuals who may have been in contact with a COVID-19 case through a public space that they need to immediately self-isolate and seek testing.
Alerts will also only be issued provided that:
- all contacts from the exposure cannot be notified within 48 hours;
- there is a resulting increased risk to the public; and
- direction is needed for public members to immediately self-isolated due to increased risk.
The announcement came just hours after chief medical officer Dr. Saqib Shahab held a news conference about the new public health order requiring masks in indoor public spaces throughout the province.
It also came just a day before Saskatchewan reported a daily record high of over 300 new cases on Nov. 14.
The SHA also stated that reasonable effort will be made to inform businesses and locations that they will be named before these exposure PSAs are released, but that it may not always be possible.
Public health will continue to list active outbreaks at specific locations in the province as they are declared, included on the COVID-19 Active Outbreaks page at saskatchewan.ca/covid19.
