Is Alberta ready for risk-reward exit plan from the lockdown?

Short of outright virus eradication, the question of whether Alberta is “ready” to begin loosening public health regulations is inherently subjective. Some will think we’re moving too fast, while others will think we’re not moving quickly enough (there may even be a cohort who think we’ve got it just right).

However it looks on paper, what ultimately matters is our collective response. The real strength of Alberta’s plan lies not in any of its specifics but rather in the incentives it creates.

If we are to get to Stage 1, let alone stages 2 and 3, then we all have to do our part. There may be a temptation to start thinking that we’re putting this pandemic in our rear-view mirror. Such complacency, though, is dangerous and the relaunch strategy incentivizes us to avoid falling into that trap.

It’s not unreasonable for Albertans to want to know that all of our efforts up until this point are leading to some sort of payoff. This strategy gives us that. Progression to each new stage is dependent on the successful execution of the previous stage, and that should hopefully be enough for Albertans to not let down our collective guard. But it’s not just that the government is placing a great deal of trust in Albertans, Albertans are placing a great deal of trust in the government, too. While individuals, businesses and organizations need to hold up their end of the bargain, the relaunch strategy also hinges on the government doing its part.

Clearly, the government would much rather see us progressing smoothly through the various stages of this plan, and that creates an

There’s the potential for more of these kinds of outbreaks if we’re not careful.

incentive for it to provide the support that is so vital to its success.

Even before we get to the first stage, the government has outlined the safeguards that need to be in place: enhanced testing capacity, comprehensive contact tracing, isolation support where needed for individuals who test positive for COVID-19, stronger international border controls, rules and guidelines for the use of masks in crowded areas, and stronger protections for seniors centres and those in long-term and continuing care.

It is to the government’s credit that it’s acknowledging the need to address these areas before embarking on a relaunch strategy. Whether it’s successful in holding up its end of the bargain obviously remains to be seen, but the government at least can recognize what’s required of it.

What also needs to be on the government’s priority list is a clear communication strategy so that business operators — whether they are reopening or expanding their operations — know what is expected of them when it comes to keeping their employees and their customers safe. There may be further need to ensure that businesses have access to protective equipment.

We also need to make sure we learn the lessons from those instances where things have gone wrong in recent weeks. While Alberta has indeed had successes in terms of testing capabilities and hospitalizations well below even optimistic projections, we have had setbacks.

The massive outbreak at the Cargill meat-packing plant near High River was a failure at multiple levels — one that could have and should have been avoided. The situation at the JBS plant near Brooks isn’t much better, either.

With word of a new outbreak at the Amazon facility in Balzac, we’ll hopefully have an opportunity to see what a more effective response looks like. As more Albertans begin to head back to work, there’s the potential for more of these kinds of outbreaks if we’re not careful and that would certainly derail our relaunch strategy.

The sorts of normalcy and economic activity outlined in Stage 3 offer a tantalizing glimpse of what’s possible. That should give us all an incentive for not screwing this up.