Why it's going to be hard to end Ontario's measles outbreak
Ontario currently has more measles cases than in all of the U.S. combined, and infections are climbing in Alberta and Manitoba. CBC's Jennifer Yoon breaks down what's behind the resurgence of a disease eliminated decades ago, and why those on the front line say it's going to be really difficult to get this outbreak under control.
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CBC
30 minutes ago
- CBC
Ontario's fertility funding boost extends 'needed' support to prospective parents
Baden Colt stands next to an array of medications on her dining room table, pointing out a single box of pills that clocks in at $1300. It's just one relatively small expense in her and her husband Zane Colt's multi-year journey to grow their family. "This all adds up very, very quickly," Baden said. Now partway through their third round of in-vitro fertilization, or IVF, Zane estimates they've spent between 50 and 60 thousand dollars of their own money on fertility treatments. "The hardest part is mental," Baden said. "It's knowing that there's not a guarantee." The Colts are welcoming the news that the Ontario government is putting up money to bring more clinics into the Ontario Fertility Program, and funding a tax credit that will provide up to $5000 annually for fertility expenses, announced on Wednesday. "The tax credit gives us a little additional support, which is so needed," said Zane. Some patients wait 3 years for treatment, says advocate Renee Higgins, who serves alongside Zane Colt on the board of Conceivable Dreams, a fertility patient advocacy nonprofit, has had a long fertility journey as well. Higgins, who lives in the Sudbury area, has gone through seven rounds of IVF — all without the benefit of a nearby fertility clinic to visit for treatment. "I had to drive over four hours to get to my fertility clinic a few times a week, for many years," she said. WATCH | How far do some Canadians travel for fertility treatments?: $100K and epic drives: The harsh reality of IVF access in Canada 1 year ago Duration 13:07 Northern Ontario currently has no fertility clinics, but Higgins is hoping this latest announcement changes that and "inspires some new ones to set up" in the region. There are currently 50 clinics that offer government-funded fertility treatments in the province. Ontario is currently taking applications from both new and existing clinics to introduce or expand their options for prospective parents. Higgins says that more clinics in the province could also reduce how long patients have to wait before they get treatment. "Currently, we have very long wait times… we're seeing patients waiting 18 months, two years, three years in some instances," said Higgins. Fertility as 'essential healthcare' At present, Ontario's healthcare plan pays for one cycle of IVF, plus an additional cycle for anyone acting as a surrogate — but doesn't cover the testing and medications that are used during the process. It also covers artificial insemination, intra-uterine insemination, and freezing sperm or egg samples for people with a medical reason, such as someone who is undergoing a medical treatment that could cause infertility. According to Dr. Paul Chang at TRIO, a chain of GTA fertility clinics, about 28,000 people in Canada went through an IVF cycle last year, with the average wait time in Ontario ranging between 10 months and a year. Carolynn Dubé, executive director of advocacy organization Fertility Matters, says she's pleased to see provinces like Ontario improving their coverage for fertility treatments — though she notes that in Alberta, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories, no program exists at all. "The gold standard would be for fertility to be recognized as essential healthcare in this country," she told CBC Toronto.
CBC
2 hours ago
- CBC
Measles is surging in Alberta. Which vaccine-preventable disease could be next?
Social Sharing Doctors and scientists worry Alberta's measles outbreaks could signal the start of a new era when other dangerous infectious diseases of the past could re-emerge and pose new health threats. The province is battling its worst wave of measles cases in nearly half a century and there is no end in sight. The virus was declared eliminated in Canada in 1998. But vaccination rates have declined in Alberta, and around the country in recent years. "To some extent measles is the canary in the coalmine," said Dr. Cora Constantinescu, a pediatric infectious diseases specialist at Alberta Children's Hospital in Calgary. As of Friday, a total of 879 measles cases had been reported in the province since the outbreaks began in March. "When the immunization rates go down and you have a lot of unprotected people in the communities, usually the first vaccine-preventable disease to come back is measles," said Constantinescu on a measles episode of CBC Radio's Alberta at Noon. It's one of the first to re-emerge, experts say, because it is so highly contagious and requires very high vaccination rates (about 95 per cent) for population level protection. Provincial data shows in 2024 just 68.1 per cent of Alberta two-year-olds were up to date with two doses of the measles vaccine. The level of immunization needed for herd immunity varies from one disease to another, but vaccination rates for other childhood illnesses are dropping too, sparking fears about what's next. "For many diseases we have now fallen, again, below herd immunity," said Craig Jenne, a professor in the department of microbiology, immunology and infectious diseases at the University of Calgary. "We're getting into the realm where diseases that were really problematic here in Canada in the 1950s and 60s — and that through a really comprehensive and well-co-ordinated vaccination campaign were largely eliminated — are coming back." It's a big concern for University of Alberta infectious diseases specialist Dr. Lynora Saxinger as well. "To me it's a little bit of a red flag in terms of what we might be seeing of other diseases of the past. Maybe it won't be so much in the past anymore," she said. "And that is a large burden of illness that can have complications in a lot of different ways." Polio concerns These diseases, while often forgotten, can be life-changing and even deadly. "We worry about seeing resurgence of things like polio, that we really have not had for a long time," said Dr. Stephanie Smith, an infectious diseases specialist at the University of Alberta Hospital. Polio is highly infectious and can infect the nervous system. While many people have mild flu-like symptoms, or no symptoms at all, they can still spread the illness. And in some cases it can lead to paralysis and even death. "We've all seen the historic pictures of people in iron lungs to support breathing. There's no reason why that couldn't happen again if we see polio re-establish in the province," said Jenne. Polio outbreaks spread unfettered across the country for decades. In 1953 — a particularly bad year for the virus — there were 9,000 cases and 500 deaths reported. According to the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) widespread immunization led to a dramatic drop in polio cases in the 1950s. The last time wild poliovirus was acquired in Canada was 1977 and the country was declared free of the wild poliovirus in 1994. Alberta's routine childhood immunization schedule recommends babies receive doses of the vaccine that protects against polio (IPV) at two months of age, four months, six months and 18 months. An additional dose is offered at the age of four. The injections also protect against diptheria, tetanus, and pertussis (DTaP). Provincial data shows 75.8 per cent of two-year-olds were up to date with four doses of the vaccine in 2015. That number dropped to 68.9 per cent in 2024. According to Jenne, polio vaccine uptake needs to be at least 80 to 86 per cent for herd immunity. In 2024, the north, central and south zones had the lowest rates, hovering between 55 and 56 per cent. In some localized areas the uptake is extremely low. In High Level, for example, 13.4 per cent of two-year-olds had four doses of the polio vaccine in 2024. Two Hills County reported 17.3 per cent and the Municipal District of Taber reported 28.7 per cent. "[With] polio and all sorts of other vaccine-preventable illnesses, it's concerning that we see vaccination rates being low for all of those," said Smith. Whooping cough outbreaks Pertussis, which is also known as whooping cough, has already flared up in Alberta. "Whooping cough is very dangerous for infants under the age of one," said Jenne. Pertussis can lead to serious complications in young babies including pneumonia, seizures and death. Vaccination rates for it have fallen alongside polio. "One to four deaths related to pertussis occur each year in Canada, typically in infants who are too young to be immunized, or children who are unimmunized or only partially immunized," the PHAC website states. There were 894 confirmed cases of pertussis in Alberta in 2023, when outbreaks were declared in all health zones. And outbreaks have since continued. "It is a changing landscape now where unfortunately the advantage is tipping in favour of these infectious diseases," said Jenne. Doctors worry about mumps and chicken pox as well. Saxinger said Alberta's overall vaccination rates tend to be lower than many other jurisdictions and she wants people to know these are not just benign childhood illnesses. "There is genuinely a lot of concern around the whole vaccine-preventable disease front," she said. "We're not thinking about people who had complications along the way and the burden of that in a community." And as doctors and scientists watch Alberta's measles case counts balloon, that sense of urgency grows. "We have tools to bring them back under control. It just requires significant effort — significant co-ordination — and we need the public to step up and get those vaccine rates back up to the protection that we had enjoyed for the last two or three decades that really saw these diseases eradicated from Canada," said Jenne.
CBC
2 hours ago
- CBC
Belleville remains under a state of emergency with little hope on the horizon
More than a year after Belleville, Ont., declared a state of emergency triggered by a spate of overdoses linked to the opioid epidemic, people at the heart of the crisis say the situation has gone from bad to worse. Brian Orford lives on Belleville's streets. He's among those who survived last year's batch of tainted drugs — fentanyl, often laced with benzodiazepines or animal tranquilizers. "I'm kind of bummed out because I'm here, I'm on the streets trying to push harder than ever to get a place and get work and everything again," said Orford. Orford said his girlfriend is pregnant and is staying in one of the very few shelter beds in town, while he sleeps behind the Salvation Army building. They are desperate for housing. "She's got a place to lay her head at night, but I'm still over here and we just want to get a place together and start settling down," he said. For now, the state of emergency remains in place and everyone's watching for Belleville's big fix. In May 2023, the city bought an abandoned banquet hall on the edge of town with a plan to convert it into a shelter. It was supposed to open at the end of 2024 or early 2025 and be a 24-hour-a-day hub for services, with temporary beds and housing support alongside counselling and health care. But structural issues have caused delays and the price tag for the building and renovations has ballooned from a projected $3 million to $8.5 million. That includes $5 million from city coffers plus another nearly $3.5 million from Health Canada. The goal now is to open before the end of 2025. In the meantime, the province has allotted $6.3 million per year for three years to fund operational costs, including a service to help homeless clients find housing in the broader region. Brian Orford 5 minutes ago Duration 0:28 Homeless numbers rising There's currently just one temporary centre that provides drop-in services in Belleville. The Bridge Hub is overseen by the Canadian Mental Health Association and operates only during the daytime. Those living on the streets say it's not enough. In the absence of round-the-clock resources, the number of homeless people on Belleville's streets has risen from just under 200 last spring to roughly 300 this year. Neil Ellis, Mayor of Belleville 5 minutes ago Duration 0:37 Belleville Mayor Neil Ellis isn't sugarcoating the scope of the problem. "It's the worst social issue that we're going to face in our lifetime and it's not going to get any better, and that's what scares me," he said. Residents, many of whom have been feeling the impact of homelessness and addictions issues firsthand, told CBC they worry the permanent hub will get delayed further and the problem will only get worse. "They're saying it's not our problem, it's the government's problem," said Belleville resident Laura Corbay. "Then they'll say it's the police's problem. Then the police will say it's the city's problem." Aaron Crawford, Belleville Police Service 5 minutes ago Duration 0:33 'Band-Aids over bullet holes' Sara Lougheed is homeless and battling a fentanyl addiction. She was set up with housing in the last year but has since lost it after inviting friends over. "You want to still help your friends and ... bring them in and let them have a shower and things like that, and some people just flip out," said Lougheed, who pointed to a lack of support for people transitioning from the streets to housing. Const. Aaron Crawford has seen this pattern play out many times: Someone finally lands housing, they invite a friend to come in off the streets, and soon the home has been overtaken by armed drug dealers. "Showing up with guns at two, three in the morning, of course you're going to get the eviction notice posted on your door. No one wants that nonsense next to them," he said. "When you introduce that sort of stuff into those people's lives you're going to get complaints, and those people end up getting kicked out and losing their housing." Crawford said the justice, bail and health-care systems need dramatic reform before things will get any better. "You can throw some mental health workers out on the street," he said "You can throw cops out on the road to try and address these things with. The bottom line is, you're kind of putting Band-Aids over bullet holes." The Breakdown | Overdose emergency in Belleville, Ont. 10 months ago Duration 20:19 The National takes you to Belleville, Ont., where an overdose crisis has become a local state of emergency. CBC's Omar Dabaghi-Pacheco hears from the residents, addicts and police who are searching for a viable solution.
