{"id":11488,"date":"2021-03-20T09:44:18","date_gmt":"2021-03-20T12:44:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.chmafm.com\/welcome\/?p=11488"},"modified":"2021-03-20T11:37:49","modified_gmt":"2021-03-20T14:37:49","slug":"ns-ends-border-restrictions-nb-wont-follow-suit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.chmafm.com\/welcome\/ns-ends-border-restrictions-nb-wont-follow-suit\/","title":{"rendered":"NS ends border restrictions early, NB won’t follow suit, yet"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Nova<\/a>
The New Brunswick-Nova Scotia border. Photo: Reddit u\/CanadianBakin<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As of 8am Saturday morning, the requirement to self isolate for 14 days after entering Nova Scotia from New Brunswick has been lifted. Nova Scotia Premier Iain Rankin and Chief Medical Officer Robert Strang made the announcement at a briefing on Friday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe look forward to reopening the entire Atlantic bubble but in the meantime, with case numbers declining, we are comfortable opening the New Brunswick border,\u201d said Rankin. \u201cWe know many businesses and families need to cross this border frequently and we don\u2019t want to delay their return to normal travel routines.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile the New Brunswick government is sticking to its previously announced plan to lift self-isolation requirements within the Atlantic provinces on April 19, just over four weeks away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But that \u201cmay change at any time\u201d, according to an emailed statement from health department spokesperson Bruce Macfarlane:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have announced that no later than April 19th we will be reopening the Atlantic bubble, conditional upon COVID-19 case numbers remaining low, containing outbreaks, and advice from public health,\u201d wrote MacFarlane on Friday. His statement continues:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Currently, anyone entering the province will be required to self-isolate for 14 days, including New Brunswickers returning from Nova Scotia.<\/p>

Public Health will continue to monitor the situation in New Brunswick. The decision to ease travel restrictions will continue to be closely monitored and may change at any time, based on public health advice.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNO REASON TO WAIT,\u201d SAYS RANKIN<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rankin said that similar epidemiology between the two provinces was behind Nova Scotia\u2019s decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNew Brunswick is doing very well,\u201d said Rankin Friday. \u201cWhen you look at our epidemiology. There are virtually no differences in our two provinces.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rankin said the decision will bring the rules for New Brunswick in line with those for PEI.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe’ve been talking about this for a number of days. And when I broached the topic with my colleagues in other provinces, it became a discussion about what an Atlantic bubble would look like,\u201d said Rankin. \u201cSo we’re looking at that in April. But if we have comfort in our province, for New Brunswick as we do for PEI, there’s no reason to wait.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When asked about whether New Brunswick might be considering a similar path, Dr. Robert Strang said he hoped so, but the decision was ultimately not his.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don’t know what decisions New Brunswick is making. I would hope that New Brunswick could look at\u2026 we have comparable epidemiology, the risks of COVID are very similar in both provinces. But that’s a decision ultimately by the New Brunswick government,\u201d said Strang.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

New Brunswick left the Atlantic Bubble on November 26, 2020. If the border restrictions remain in place until April 19, they will have been in place for nearly five months, or 144 days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nova Scotia left the Bubble with New Brunswick on January 9, 2021. When the restrictions ended today, March 20, they had been in effect for just under two and a half months, or 70 days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About two weeks ago, Aulac resident Beth Scammell started a petition asking for the immediate end to border restrictions<\/a>, saying that residents of Cumberland and Westmorland Counties have suffered financially, mentally, and emotionally from the border restrictions. Just over 1500 people have signed the petition as of Saturday morning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

READ MORE ABOUT SCAMMELL\u2019S PETITION HERE:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Petition calls for an open border, now<\/a><\/blockquote>