N.S. To Tighten Border Restrictions With N.B.

Nova Scotia is re-establishing border measures with New Brunswick, starting Wednesday, amid rising COVID-19 case numbers in our province.

Premier-designate Tim Houston says New Brunswickers and Nova Scotians who are not fully vaccinated will have to quarantine when entering the province.

“That will be a week of quarantine of testing if you’ve had one dose and two weeks if you’ve not had any vaccine at all,” premier-designate Tim Houston said Monday.

Houston said the government expects the measures to “impact a very small number of people.” Exceptions will be made for workers and students who frequently cross the border and people who need to make quick trips.

People moving to Nova Scotia or coming for vacation or an extended stay will have to complete the Nova Scotia Safe Check-in and self-isolate based on vaccination status and testing.

The premier-designated noted that both provinces are on the same page when it comes to these restrictions.

As of Monday, New Brunswick had 173 active cases of COVID-19, with more than half of them being in the Moncton health region.

Dr. Robert Strang, the chief medical health officer for Nova Scotia, pointed out that some of Nova Scotia’s cases are directly linked to New Brunswick.

“The main factor that’s adding additional restrictions for New Brunswick is the epidemiology for New Brunswick and what we’re seeing is that it’s been driven by unvaccinated people,” said Strang.

However, Strang said case numbers in Nova Scotia are generally manageable and there are “not yet any signs of community spread.”

Houston, meanwhile, said continuing to protect the borders is key to limiting the spread of COVID-19 in Nova Scotia.

“Being cautious has kept this province safe and we will continue to be cautious,” he said.

N.S. Projected To Enter Phase 5 On Sept. 15

If all goes according to plan, Nova Scotia will drop almost every pandemic-related public health restriction by the middle of September.

Houston says he will move the province into Phase 5 of its COVID-19 recovery on Sept. 15, as long as Nova Scotians continue to get vaccinated.

He said he expects 72 per cent of Nova Scotians to be fully vaccinated by the end of August. Public health officials believe that number will reach 75 per cent by the middle of September.

Based on that projection, Houston is setting Sept. 15 as the target date to move the province into Phase 5 of its recovery process.

However, Houston said, “if we hit the target sooner, we’ll work with public health to open sooner.”

According to Houston, Phase 5 means “no restrictions or mandatory public health measures” like masks or gathering limits. But some restrictions will remain at the province’s border.

With files from Trevor Nichols at Huddle, an Acadia Broadcasting content partner.