TORONTO -- Canada has now administered at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine to 38.2 per cent of the country's population. Here’s what else you need to know to start your day.
1. Chinese state influence: Activists, experts and policy makers are speaking out on what they describe as an ever-growing "influence" of the Chinese Communist Party in Canadian business, academic and political circles.
2. Delayed second dose: Jurisdictions across the country have chosen to prolong the time between the first and second doses of COVID-19 vaccines by up to four months. But with Canada's vaccine supply set to increase, will provinces start to shorten the interval between shots?
3. Allergic reactions: A three-month study on vaccine side effects found severe allergic reactions to the Pfizer-BioNTech and AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines were rare, affecting less than two per cent of people.
4. 'Case of misunderstanding': An Ottawa hospital has apologized and said it will reimburse the Toronto woman's family forced to pay a private company to bring her uncle's body home after he was transferred to the hospital and later died there of COVID-19.
5. Locking public spaces: When lockdowns close off public sports spaces such as basketball courts and soccer fields, they disproportionately affect lower-income and racialized families in dense cities, land-use experts say.
One more thing…
Indoor spaces: A new study suggests that even with distancing, spending too long in an indoor space could expose you to COVID-19.
