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COVID-19: Quebec pharmacies to receive more rapid tests this week

"Some pharmacies will receive them Monday, some Tuesday and others Wednesday."

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Quebec pharmacies will receive 3 million more rapid antigen tests in the next few days, after most drugstores ran out of them as demand exceeded supply.

“Some pharmacies will receive them Monday, some Tuesday and others Wednesday,” said Hughes Mousseau, general manager of the Quebec Association of Pharmacy Distributors.

As has been the case since distribution of the free self-testing kits started, it’s up to pharmacies to decide who gets access, he said on Sunday.

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“There are some pharmacies that will give priority to their regular clientele, while for others it’s by appointment. Some pharmacies have a virtual waiting list,” he said.

Many pharmacies have been posting signs saying tests were unavailable after being besieged with customers seeking them.

“When people came forward (asking for tests) in the past days and weeks, some pharmacists might have taken down their names,” Mousseau said.

The rush for testing kits surged this month as Quebec has scaled back PCR testing for the general public.

The new shipments will bring the total number of tests handed out in January by pharmacies to 9 million. Since they come in boxes of five, that means 1.8 million test kits will have been distributed, he said.

Test kits have also been distributed to primary schools, daycares, health-care workers and essential service workers like police officers.

Mousseau said people who already have access to tests through their work or their children’s school or daycare should consider leaving the supplies in drugstores for people who have no other access to them.

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All Quebecers 14 and older are eligible for one kit, containing five tests, every month.

“The goal is to ensure that the maximum number of households get access to them,” he said.

The tests, purchased by the Public Health Agency of Canada, come from Asia via Toronto, he said.

For the fourth day in a row, Quebec reported a drop in the number of people hospitalized for COVID-19.

A total of 3,283 patients were hospitalized — 12 fewer than the previous day and nearly 200 fewer than the all-time high set last week. Of them, 1,710 had COVID-19 as a primary diagnosis, a number that has also been declining for the past four days.

Quebec reported 273 people in intensive care — a decrease of two and down from an all-time high of 289 last week.

There were also 33 more deaths attributed to the virus on Sunday, bringing the total death toll to 12,799.

With PCR tests still restricted, Quebec reported 5,141 more COVID-19 cases confirmed through those tests, though it continues to warn that this number is no longer an accurate indicator of the spread of the virus.

Quebec reported 75,831 doses of vaccine administered on Saturday, including 53,813 third doses and 17,747 second doses, as children 5-11 who got their first doses in November are now becoming eligible for their second. Quebec has administered a total of 17.4 million vaccine doses, of which 683,000 were administered in the last week.

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Stores reopened their doors Sunday following a ban imposed for the first three Sundays of the year by the Quebec government.

Christophe Fiore, the co-owner of grocery store Fruiterie Roger in Montreal, shared mixed feelings about reopening on Sundays.

He said that while the provincial restriction helped to address a staffing shortage, it also produced a counter-effect.

“It’s not a good solution when it comes to COVID,” Fiore said. “It was not pleasant, Saturdays and Mondays became extremely busy and the rest of the week was quiet.”

Fiore said reopening on Sundays is helping restore balance.

“We are already seeing it, yesterday and today were quieter,” he said.

Louise Duflos, who works at one of Montreal’s largest no-waste grocery stores, echoed Fiore’s comments, adding the restriction came as most staff were struggling with COVID-19.

“When we were asked to shut doors on Sundays, there were more COVID cases so fewer people were able to work,” Duflos said. “So it worked out well, less hours but also less staff.”

Having Sundays back on her schedule will bring some welcome financial stability, she added.

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“It’s been complicated to deal with all the changes over the last weeks.”

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.

mscott@postmedia.com

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