COVID-19: Notley grills Kenney over summer pandemic absence; Alberta reports 315 cases

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For the second day in a row, NDP Leader Rachel Notley peppered Premier Jason Kenney with questions about his government’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic over the summer.

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At the legislature on Tuesday, Notley accused Kenney of being absent as Alberta’s cases and hospitalizations soared while he was on vacation in August.

The premier said he called an emergency meeting of the COVID-19 cabinet committee as soon as he was warned hospitals could be impacted.

“We accepted recommendations to delay the implementation of moving from pandemic to endemic management. All of that is very clear. It’s a matter of public record.”

Kenney said he stayed in touch with staff and made decisions while away, including to expand access to COVID-19 booster shots: “Ultimately I’m responsible for the executive council.”

Notley pointed out his calendar doesn’t show daily meetings with anyone while he was on vacation.

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“During the three weeks when this premier supposedly managed the pandemic from Europe, case counts in Alberta more than tripled,” she said.

“Can the premier tell us why, when Albertans desperately needed someone to protect their health and their safety and that of their families, all they got was out of office replies?”

Kenney did not indicate who, if anyone, was given the premier’s authority while away. He said he gets daily COVID-19 updates wherever he is.

The premier also did not answer Notley’s question about why he didn’t know that up to 30 per cent of non-urgent Edmonton Zone surgeries would be cancelled ahead of time, as AHS has an internal early warning system.

During Monday night’s special COVID-19 debate at the legislature, Notley asked Kenney why he didn’t take more aggressive action in the summer.

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Kenney said if chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw had suggested something he would have listened: “Had there been further recommendations later in August to take additional measures, I would have immediately convened a cabinet committee meeting to approve those.”

Active cases and hospitalizations have since dropped significantly since the government first announced a vaccine passport program mid-September.

315 cases, hospitalizations up slightly

On Tuesday, 315 more cases of the disease were reported and hospitalizations and ICU numbers climbed slightly.

There were 691 people hospitalized for COVID-19 by Tuesday, an increase of two, and ICU numbers climbed by two to 159.

Eight more deaths were reported.

Active cases fell province-wide to 6,911, including 1,540 in the Edmonton Zone, 1,846 in the Calgary Zone, 1,492 in the North Zone, and 1,274 in the Central Zone.

– With files from Lisa Johnson

lboothby@postmedia.com

@laurby