UCP MUST ACCOUNT FOR TESTING RATE FAILURE IN MIDST OF PANDEMIC’S SECOND WAVE

EDMONTON - New data shows testing rates declined below 10,000 this week, dramatically below the 20,000 tests per day Jason Kenney promised to achieve by mid-May.

Earlier this year, the UCP government unveiled a strategy to manage the deadly COVID-19 pandemic based on widespread testing, enhanced contact tracing, and Albertans taking personal responsibility for their actions. 

“Just as we are entering the second wave of this pandemic, and with new case counts nearly double the levels seen during the first wave, Jason Kenney is failing to execute on this strategy to keep Albertans safe,” said David Shepherd, NDP Critic for Health.  

Yesterday, Alberta formally declared 410 new cases. However, adjusting for testing rates and assuming the same positive case rate, the new count would have been 739, more than double the all time high in cases seen on April 23, during the first wave of the pandemic. 

The NDP Official Opposition has called on the UCP government to increase testing rates, hire an additional 500 contract tracers to reach benchmark levels, and get the federal COVID19 app deployed immediately to help manage the viral spread and prevent further lockdowns. 

“Jason Kenney has called on Albertans to demonstrate personal responsibility to manage this pandemic, but he is not taking any personal responsibility for failing to deliver on the government’s strategy to manage the pandemic,” said Shepherd. “Albertans deserve answers on why this government is five months behind schedule on hitting its testing targets as we enter the second wave of this pandemic.”