This is not a time to be complacent with COVID-19

With active COVID-19 cases on the decline in Alberta and daily counts of confirmed new cases dropping to levels not seen since early March, it’s a rather strange time for the government to be undermining its own success.

Furthermore, it will be difficult for Premier Jason Kenney to tout that success going forward if he’s flirting with the notion that our public health measures were never necessary in the first place or pandering to those who subscribe to that belief.

Last week, the government provided details on how it intends to make available to Albertans millions of non-medical masks. That announcement came just days after the premier’s controversial remarks in the Alberta legislature that appeared to represent a change in tone on the matter of COVID-19.

The government deserves credit for taking the initiative to purchase these masks and for finding a clever way of making them widely available. Through a partnership with Mcdonald’s, Tim Hortons and A&W, Albertans will be able to obtain these masks — for free —through any of the 600 or so drive-thrus that these three restaurant chains have across the province.

The idea behind the plan is that widespread mask-wearing, especially in crowded public areas, can be effective in reducing the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19. As more of society reopens, this can be an important component of a broader strategy to keep the virus in check. This is all incumbent, of course, on Albertans deciding for themselves to obtain and wear these masks.

The premier’s comments in the legislature earlier in the week, though, could end up hindering this plan. After all, if COVID-19 is no big deal and is basically the flu, then why do we need to wear masks, anyway?

We see evidence in the U.S. of how mask-wearing can become politicized, with some proudly proclaiming their intent to not wear a mask and even some businesses forbidding their customers from wearing one. Should such sentiment take hold here, it could prove rather problematic for the government’s plan.

Kenney’s speech in the legislature Wednesday did include some very salient points about Alberta’s response to COVID-19 and the effect it has had here. However, Kenney also claimed multiple times that COVID-19 is a form of influenza or is comparable to the flu. He even claimed that Albertans had some sort of natural immunity to the disease.

Of course, COVID-19 is not influenza and certainly appears to be more contagious, more deadly, and more severe than influenza. While Alberta’s COVID-19 death toll is much lower than other jurisdictions, we’ve far surpassed what would be a typical flu season death toll — and that’s with unprecedented public health measures. Surely the premier knows all of this.

There is indeed a balance to be struck between keeping Albertans vigilant about COVID-19 but confident enough to embrace the idea of reopening and relaunching various aspects of society and the economy. Acknowledging the realities of COVID-19 does not preclude us from moving forward, so it’s unclear what point Kenney was trying to make. Obviously, no one wants to go backward, but we avoid that through smart policy not bizarre downplaying of the threat.

Effective public health measures can be a victim of their own success in that avoiding calamity can make it appear to some that the measures were an unnecessary overreaction. Perhaps the premier is worried that his government is not getting enough credit for Alberta’s success. Perhaps he’s trying to appeal to a certain segment of his base. Perhaps he’s just worried that the relaunch is being met with trepidation

Whatever his intent or motivation, we should hope to hear less of this sort of sentiment from the premier.

Complacency about COVID-19 is what will ultimately undermine and possibly undo the achievements we’ve made here in Alberta.

Perhaps he’s trying to appeal to a … segment of his base.