COPENHAGEN, DENMARK — Finland has joined other Nordic countries in suspending or discouraging the use of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine in certain age groups because of an increased risk of heart inflammation, a rare side effect associated with the shot.

The Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare said Thursday that authorities won’t give the shot to males under age 30. They will be offered the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine instead. The government agency said it found that young men and boys were at a slightly higher risk of developing myocarditis.

The move by Finland followed similar decisions by three neighboring countries on Wednesday. Sweden suspended the use of Moderna for people under 30, Denmark said those under 18 won’t be offered the Swiss-made vaccine, and Norway urged those under 30 to get the Pfizer vaccine instead.

All four countries based their decision on an unpublished study with Sweden’s Public Health Agency saying that it signals “an increased risk of side effects such as inflammation of the heart muscle or the pericardium” — the double-walled sac containing the heart and the roots of the main vessels. It added: “The risk of being affected is very small.”

The preliminary information from the Nordic study has been sent to the European Medicines Agency’s adverse reaction committee to be assessed.

OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says the economy added 157,000 jobs in September, bringing employment back to pre-pandemic levels for the first time.

The unemployment rate fell to 6.9 per cent, down from 7.1 per cent in August.

Statistics Canada says the unemployment rate would have been 8.9 per cent in September, down from 9.1 per cent in August, had it included in calculations Canadians who wanted to work but didn’t search for a job.

The last time Canada had this large an employment gain was in June 2021, when the economy added 231,000 jobs.

The statistics agency says the job gains were widespread, but concentrated in full-time work and evenly split between the public and private sector. Gains were also notable in industries where many workers continue to work remotely.

Still, the ranks of long-term unemployed who have been without work for six month or more remained little changed last month and was still double the number recorded in February 2020.

Leah Nord, senior director of workforce strategies with the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, says the fact that nearly 400,000 Canadians are long-term unemployed should put a pause on any celebrations, particularly with no data to explain why they haven’t been able to rejoin the labour force in months.

“Canadians want to work, most are not unemployed by choice, so we need to dig down and find out exactly what’s holding them back so we can make evidence-based decisions,” she says in a statement.

“Our full economic recovery depends on it.”

Employment also fell by 20,000 in retail trade in September, bringing employment in the sector to within 71,000 jobs, or 3.1 per cent, of its February 2020 level. Statistics Canada notes that despite the easing of restrictions across Canada, employment in the industry has been around the same level since June.

A similar story played out in the hard-hit accommodation and food services sector, which saw its first decline in five months as 27,000 jobs were lost after gaining 211,000 positions between May and August.

The statistics agency also notes the employment rate remains just below the pre-pandemic figure, reflecting the fact that job growth hasn’t matched population growth over the past 19 months.

CIBC senior economist Royce Mendes says the headline figures for the month likely seals the deal for the Bank of Canada to further ease the pace of its bond-buying program later this month.

He adds that there is still a ways to go to fully heal the labour market.

Here’s a quick look at Canada’s September employment (numbers from the previous month in brackets):

• Unemployment rate: 6.9 per cent (7.1)
• Employment rate: 60.9 per cent (60.5)
• Participation rate: 65.5 per cent (65.1)
• Number unemployed: 1,421,800 (1,440,000)
• Number working: 19,131,200 (18,974,100)
• Youth (15-24 years) unemployment rate: 11.3 per cent (11.6)
• Men (25 plus) unemployment rate: 6.4 per cent (6.6)
• Women (25 plus) unemployment rate: 5.9 per cent (6.0)

Here are the jobless rates last month by province (numbers from the previous month in brackets):

• Newfoundland and Labrador 13.1 per cent (12.1)
• Prince Edward Island 11.3 per cent (10.6)
• Nova Scotia 8.0 per cent (7.8)
• New Brunswick 9.3 per cent (9.3)
• Quebec 5.7 per cent (5.8)
• Ontario 7.3 per cent (7.6)
• Manitoba 5.6 per cent (5.7)
• Saskatchewan 6.3 per cent (7.0)
• Alberta 8.1 per cent (7.9)
• British Columbia 5.9 per cent (6.2)

Statistics Canada also released seasonally adjusted, three-month moving average unemployment rates for major cities. It cautions, however, that the figures may fluctuate widely because they are based on small statistical samples. Here are the jobless rates last month by city (numbers from the previous month in brackets):

• St. John’s, N.L. 6.3 per cent (6.9)
• Halifax 7.0 per cent (7.5)
• Moncton, N.B. 6.4 per cent (6.0)
• Saint John, N.B. 8.7 per cent (8.7)
• Saguenay, Que. 5.3 per cent (5.5)
• Quebec City 4.1 per cent (4.4)
• Sherbrooke, Que. 4.5 per cent (5.2)
• Trois-Rivieres, Que. 5.1 per cent (5.0)
• Montreal 6.7 per cent (7.0)
• Gatineau, Que. 4.4 per cent (5.2)
• Ottawa 5.9 per cent (6.5)
• Kingston, Ont. 7.2 per cent (7.2)
• Peterborough, Ont. 6.6 per cent (6.2)
• Oshawa, Ont. 7.6 per cent (8.3)
• Toronto 8.9 per cent (9.3)
• Hamilton, Ont. 6.3 per cent (7.0)
• St. Catharines-Niagara, Ont. 8.2 per cent (10.5)
• Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo, Ont. 7.2 per cent (7.0)
• Brantford, Ont. 6.1 per cent (5.7)
• Guelph, Ont. 6.0 per cent (7.2)
• London, Ont. 7.3 per cent (7.8)
• Windsor, Ont. 10.4 per cent (10.6)
• Barrie, Ont. 6.2 per cent (7.1)
• Greater Sudbury, Ont. 8.4 per cent (8.7)
• Thunder Bay, Ont. 6.3 per cent (6.0)
• Winnipeg 6.4 per cent (7.1)
• Regina 6.1 per cent (6.2)
• Saskatoon 7.8 per cent (8.1)
• Calgary 8.9 per cent (9.6)
• Edmonton 8.2 per cent (8.2)
• Kelowna, B.C. 5.4 per cent (5.7)
• Abbotsford-Mission, B.C. 6.9 per cent (5.9)
• Vancouver 6.7 per cent (7.2)
• Victoria 4.2 per cent (4.2)

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 8, 2021

EDMONTON — An Edmonton, Alta. woman is calling on the province to implement better contact tracing policies in schools after her 10-year-old granddaughter contracted COVID-19 at school and passed the infection along to her elderly grandfather.

Megan Elliot says it wasn’t until her daughter became ill that she knew there was a possible COVID-19 case in her school, let alone an outbreak.

“What we learned was that the schools – if they weren’t provided permission from the parents – they were not able to notify anybody within the classroom that may have been in close contact [with an infected student],” Elliot told CTV National News Thursday.

“And therefore, if a parent didn’t notify the school and chose to just keep the child home because they thought they had a cold and the symptoms stopped, they were able to return to school and possibly still have COVID.”

On Wednesday, the Alberta government resumed public reporting of active outbreaks in schools reversing the province’s decision in August to end reporting of COVID-19 cases unless there was a school-wide absence rate of 10 per cent or higher.

The latest provincial data, released Thursday, reveals that 54 schools have declared outbreaks of the virus, while more than 750 have reported at least two cases.

This comes after an exponential increase in COVID-19 cases in the province over the last month, where children between the ages of five and nine years old accounted for the most active COVID-19 cases in Alberta of any age group relative to its population.

“Had we known, we would have put precautions in place,” said Elliot.

“It’s caused quite a frustrating situation for us because we want to be fully supportive. We’ve all been vaccinated. We’ve provided everything that we need to do. But the end result, she still brought it home.”

And while the province says school districts will start notifying parents if their child is exposed to COVID-19 next week, and conduct contact tracing for schools will start again in November, Elliot says more needs to be done to protect families.

“They can easily take it home to older parents and grandparents that are raising the child, that may not be vaccinated for whatever reason,” she said, adding that 10-year-old Aubree and her 85-year-old vaccinated grandfather are faring well so far.

Edmonton – This Thanksgiving will be a tough one for Carol Charles and her family.

The 50-year-old from Regina usually travels to her younger sister’s house in Edmonton for the holiday.

But Jennifer Rosebluff-Thomas died of COVID-19 last month. She was about 29 weeks pregnant with her ninth child. She was also unvaccinated and contracted the more dangerous Delta variant.

“When they did the emergency C-section, they explained to me that it was to help my sister get more oxygen into her lungs, and they confirmed at that same time that she wasn’t vaccinated and that it was preventable,” Charles said.

“That was the most hurtful part, when they told me it was preventable.”

Charles said she last spoke with Rosebluff-Thomas days before the C-section when her sister told her she was dying.

“I told her that I was going to be with the kids and not to worry,” Charles said, fighting back tears.

Rosebluff-Thomas delivered a baby girl in late August. The baby survived, but Rosebluff-Thomas died a few days later, Charles said.

She said her 35-year-old sister, who was a single, stay-at-home mother, leaves another eight children between the ages of one and 19. Charles is taking care of five of the children in Regina and the other three are with their father in Alberta.

She isn’t sure yet where the baby will be raised.

“My sister was so giving. It was hard for her to say no to her kids or anybody,” Charles said.

“She was such a giver and it’s just not fair that she is not here.”

The National Advisory Committee on Immunization and the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada recommend that pregnant women get two doses of COVID-19 vaccine.

Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta’s chief medical officer of health, recently stressed that pregnant women are at a high risk of severe outcomes from the infection.

“With a lot of misinformation about pregnancy and vaccinations circulating online, I would like to assure Albertans that mRNA COVID-19 vaccines are safe for those who are pregnant or breastfeeding,” she tweeted last month. “There is also no evidence that COVID-19 vaccines cause fertility problems.”

Kerry Williamson, a spokesman for Alberta Health Services, said that from July 15 to Sept. 28 of this year, 14 pregnant women were admitted to intensive care units.

All of them had been unvaccinated, he said.

“We need those who are pregnant, trying to become pregnant or have recently delivered to get both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as possible,” Williamson wrote in an email.

“Vaccines are safe and effective, and they are the best way to protect you and your baby from COVID-19.”

He said there is no data available about how many pregnant Albertans have died from the virus.

And while it is too late to save her sister, Charles said she hopes her story will encourage other pregnant women to get immunized.

“ (COVID-19 vaccines) aren’t guaranteed, but it helps,” Charles said. “It might not stop you from getting sick, but it will help you get through it.”

She said she spoke with her sister in the spring about getting immunized. Since Rosebluff-Thomas didn’t express any opposition to the vaccines, Charles thought she would get the shots.

She has no idea why her sister didn’t, she said.

A GoFundMe page was recently set up by one of Rosebluff-Thomas’s friends to help support her children.

“Jennifer was a beautiful person, with a beautiful soul,” the page says. “She loved all her children and did her best to give them everything and more.”

Charles said her nieces and nephews are still in shock from their mother’s death and that Thanksgiving will be difficult for them because they will not be together.

“This was our holiday and that is what we were getting readyfor next.”

She will still have Thanksgiving dinner this weekend with five of the children. Charles said she will especially miss her sister keeping her company in the kitchen while she prepares the meal.

“It doesn’t seem real, but it is,” Charles said of her sister’s death.

“It’s a whole new life for all of us without her.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 7, 2021

TORONTO — With Halloween right around the corner, experts say trick-or-treating this year may be safe depending on where you live, but ghouls and goblins going door-to-door should do so cautiously.

Dr. Anna Banerji, an infectious disease specialist at St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto, did not recommend trick-or-treating last year, but told CTVNews.ca that this year is different depending on the COVID-19 rates of your location.

“It’s safer for most people this year and right now the amount of COVID — depending on where you live — is lower,” she said in a recent phone interview. “I think it really depends on the numbers. For example, in Alberta, I don’t think trick-or-treating right now is the best idea, but versus a small town where there’s not a lot of COVID where people are vaccinated.”

A spokesperson for Alberta Health said “there are currently minimal restrictions that will impact Halloween,” but trick-or-treaters should stay home if they are feeling any symptoms and avoid touching doorbells or railings.

According to CTVNews.ca COVID-19 case tracker, there are nearly 19,000 active cases of COVID-19 in Alberta, hands down the most active province in Canada. 

Dr. Brian Conway, infectious disease specialist at the Vancouver Infectious Diseases Centre, agreed with Banerji that people in both Alberta and Saskatchewan should be more cautious this Halloween and added that it should be an outdoor-only activity across Canada this year.

“Let’s keep it outdoors, let us make sure that the houses that are being visited, we have reason to believe or we have knowledge that the individuals in the house are vaccinated, so you would be going to friends, neighbours and the like,” he said in a recent virtual interview.

Banerji added that regardless of the local rate of COVID-19, parents might want to consider other options, such as exchanging candy with a small group of friends or keeping treats out on a table for the children to grab.

Conway suggested that parents should somehow find out if the houses they are visiting are vaccinated, either through keeping the trick-or-treating to the people they already know or doing their best to pre-screen a route ahead of time.

“We’re going to live in COVID world for a long time and for the foreseeable future, this will be a world of the vaccinated and unvaccinated,” he said. 

“This activity, trick-or-treating, really is to be done by vaccinated individuals only and for younger folk who can’t be vaccinated, we need to make sure that they are surrounded during this activity only by vaccinated people.”

Conway stopped short of suggesting trick-or-treaters should be asking homes for proof of vaccination, but said Halloween is a chance for people to become more used to these kinds of circumstances.

 “Hopefully this will be another occasion — an important occasion — for our children where this normalization will just continue in COVID world,” he said.

Banerji noted that it’s important for children to understand that there may be fewer homes to approach for trick-or-treating, in part because some people may not feel comfortable with the crowds at their door.

“I think there’s a lot of adults that maybe are compromised or may not feel very comfortable having a whole bunch of primarily unvaccinated kids coming to their doorstep,” she said.

“I think people who are not comfortable, if Halloween goes on, should turn off their lights and we should have a high acceptance that there are many people that don’t feel comfortable with it.” 

For parents debating whether to send their children out for Halloween, Banerji said it ultimately comes down to what kind of risk the parents are willing to accept.

“Could there be spread among these children that are unvaccinated? Yeah, there could be, but there’s also potential for spread in classrooms,” she said. “I think the risk of exposure is fairly low, but when you have many different kids coming, then the risk may go up.”

Last year, Ontario did not recommend trick-or-treating in Ottawa, Peel, Toronto and York Region due to high case counts, while the Village of Westport, outside Kingston, Ont. cancelled Halloween festivities all together.

Dr. Kieran Moore, Ontario’s chief public health officer, told reporters on Tuesday that Ontario’s guidance surrounding Halloween will be announced on Thursday, while several other provinces are still coming up with plans for Halloween. 

In a statement, the Public Health Agency of Canada said any direction on trick-or-treating if left up to the provinces, but Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, previously suggested those handing out the candy could have them pre-packaged and handed out individually, with plenty of hand sanitizer around.

Each of the experts and government groups agreed that the typical COVID-19 suggestions of maintaining a distance of two metres from others and wearing a facemask also apply this Halloween.

“This year — as for last year — the scariest Halloween costume is the one without a mask. So wear a mask,” Conway said. 

With files from CTV News Writer Alexandra Mae Jones, CTV News Toronto and The Canadian Press