There are plans to remove more restrictions in the coming days and weeks. This is an overview of the changes that are taking place and the challenges that still exist.

1) Things are opening up, but not everything (yet)

starting today:

• The curfew was lifted across the province.
• It is allowed to dine on the terrace and on the terrace outside the restaurant.
• Up to eight people are allowed to have outdoor gatherings in private places.
• Travel between Quebec regions will be allowed.
• In a large theater or stage, it can accommodate up to 2500 people, and seats are allocated for them and appropriate measures have been taken. (Including the Bell Center in Game 6 of the Habs-Leafs series on Saturday.)

It is also possible to gather on a private balcony, but due to the actual evacuation, eight people cannot be squeezed in in many cases.

Indoor private gatherings are still prohibited.

On May 31, many regions will move from the red zone with the highest alert level to the orange zone, thereby removing other restrictions.

Montreal, Laval and some other regions will have to wait longer to achieve this transition. This means that there is currently no situation of exercising in the gym or dining indoors in the restaurant.

The Quebec-Ontario border and the international border with the United States are also closed for non-essential travel.

Prime Minister François Legault (François Legault) set June 7 as the target for the next round of change, but Montreal’s director of public health, Dr. Mylène Drouin, would not disclose his latest news on Wednesday.

(The province has released a timetable for reopening Here)

2) The number of cases, hospitalizations and deaths all decreased

Since October 7, in Quebec, hospitalization related to COVID-19 has fallen below 400 for the first time this week, and the number of people in the intensive care unit is less than 100.

The 7-day rolling average of new cases is 465, and, critically, the reproductive number is below 1, which means that the average number of infections per infected person is less than one.

Perhaps most importantly, as more and more Quebecers are vaccinated, the death toll has steadily declined.

Until late January, Quebec still recorded about 50 deaths due to COVID-19 every day. By mid-February, this number had dropped to around 15 per day, and is now about to drop below 5.

Quebec Province September 11, 2020, this is the last time that Quebec has not recorded a COVID-19 death within 24 hours.

3) There are outbreaks even outdoors

Despite these encouraging numbers, COVID-19 outbreaks continue to occur-Drouin has repeatedly expressed concern that the super-spreader incident may change the situation in the city.

According to the latest statistics from Montreal, there are 216 active outbreaks, most of which occurred in workplaces and schools.Nine of these outbreaks were Link to the park -It proves that although the possibility is small, it is still possible to spread the virus outdoors.

At a press conference on Wednesday, Drewin urged the public to follow public health guidelines indoors and outdoors.

Du Luen said: “Even if we are outside and the risk is low, we must keep our distance, of course, do not share glasses, cigarettes or other food with friends or people other than family.”

4) The vaccination rate is rising, and more vaccines are emerging

Quebec is Lead all provinces In its vaccination campaign, more than 56% of the population received one dose.

It is expected that more vaccines will arrive next month, which will allow the province to increase the appointment time for the second dose (more details will be released in early June).

Watch | How can Canadian vaccines get shipped from the factory to your arm:

Behind the scenes, there is a sophisticated system to ensure that vaccines shipped from foreign factories are safely managed here. 3:55

Thousands of teenagers who are already eligible for appointments are also being vaccinated through the school system.

However, in Montreal, the pace of vaccination among people in their forties has slowed down considerably, which has caused some concern from the authorities.

Experts warn that, given that most of the population has not yet received a single vaccine, and only 4% of people have been fully vaccinated, there is still a risk of reopening under the current circumstances.

The Provincial Institute of Public Health INSPQ released its latest forecast on Friday.

They show that non-compliance with public health rules can lead to an increase in daily cases, and that if there is insufficient vaccination coverage in all age groups, the situation could be worse.

5) The future is promising, but there are still some unknowns

The Provincial Director of Public Health, Dr. Horacio Arruda, gave an optimistic tone at the recent COVID-19 briefing.

He said: “I was vaccinated in May, and then freely vaccinated carefully, but free and hopeful for the summer.”

But experts say that when Quebec and other regions reopen, a big problem is that they can evade the potential threat of new variants of the vaccine.

So far, the available vaccines have been proven to be largely effective against existing variants of concern, but because the virus is still spreading widely in other parts of the world, there is a threat of new and more dangerous mutations. .

Professor Caroline Colijn, an infectious disease modeler at Simon Fraser University, said: “We have to receive a second dose of treatment, because it will really help the immunity against these emerging variants, and we may have to eliminate immune enhancement. Agent.” Recently told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

“We do need people to understand that they may not need to take a second dose to eat in the restaurant again, but they need them… to resume their normal lives.”