COVID-19

If you are experiencing a medical emergency, you should call 911 immediately.

If you believe a vaccine caused you to have a health issue, you should contact your local health provider. The Vaccine Injury Support Program (VISP) allows people who have suffered a serious and permanent injury as a result of receiving certain vaccines to have fair and timely access to financial support. To qualify for the VISP, some conditions apply:

• The claimant must have received a Health Canada authorized vaccine.
• The vaccine must have been administered in Canada (excluding Québec). Vaccines administered in Québec have a different claim process.
• The vaccine must have been administered on or after December 8, 2020.
• The injury must be serious and permanent (including death).
• The injury must be reported to the healthcare provider.
• The claim must be filed within three years after the date of vaccination, date of death, or date when the injury becomes apparent.

For more information about the program, visit the VISP website here:

vaccineinjurysupport.ca

At this point in time,  you are considered fully immunized if you have received two shots of a COVID vaccine. However, public health officials are suggesting that anyone who is eligible should get additional booster shots, as these shots have been shown to increase protection against COVID.

For more information about COVID booster shots, visit protectmb.ca/covid-19-vaccine.

The Canada Recovery Hiring Program (CRHP) is a program that is designed to help businesses hire staff as the economy reopens. The program provides subsidies of up to 50% of eligible salaries or wages. For more information, see the CRHP homepage here.

The CRHP was designed to interact with the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS), which ended on October 23, 2021. It has been replaced by the Tourism and Hospitality Recovery Program and the Hardest-Hit Business Recovery Program. To help figure out which subsidy program would be better for you, visit the subsidy amount calculator here.

These programs were available until May 7, 2022, but you can still apply for open claim periods until their deadlines have passed.

Social distancing is a health recommendation, not law. You are not legally required to stay 2 metres away from other people, although this is what health experts have recommended to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

As of March 15, 2022, the Government of Manitoba has ended its State of Emergency, and there are no longer any active Public Health Orders. However, some businesses may still require you to take certain proactive measures, like wearing a mask or cancelling an appointment if you are feeling unwell.

For a full list of up to date information, please visit the Government of Manitoba website here.

Individuals entering the country must also follow the federal regulations, which can be found here.

There are currently four COVID-19 vaccines that have been approved for use in Canada: Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, Astra-Zeneca, and Janssen (Johnson & Johnson). A vaccine is only approved by Health Canada when there is sufficient data showing that it is safe and effective. You can find more information about how vaccines are approved, and a list of other vaccines currently under review here.

As with any vaccine, there may be side effects associated with receiving a COVID-19 vaccine. You can read more about the side effects here. If you have concerns about receiving the vaccine, you should consult with your doctor before being vaccinated.

You can read more about the vaccines by visiting the Government of Canada’s website here, or visiting the Government of Manitoba’s vaccine Q&A page here.

You can also find more information about COVID-19 vaccines for youth and young adults here.

To learn if you are eligible for a vaccine, click here.

For more information about the available vaccines, visit protectmb.ca.

You can make an appointment to get vaccinated by visiting this link. To book online, you will need to create an account using your email address and your Manitoba Health Card number.

If you prefer to book an appointment over the phone, or if you would rather be vaccinated at a Pop-Up clinic instead of a Super-Site, you must call 1-844-MAN-VACC (1-844-626-8222). Remember to have your Manitoba Health Card number handy if you are booking by phone.

You will need to bring identification, such as your health card or driver’s license. You must also fill out a consent form (which you can do ahead of time by printing out the one found here). You must wear a mask, and you should also wear a short sleeved shirt to make vaccination easier. If you need to, you are allowed to bring a caregiver or family member with you, as long as they also wear a mask.

To help with physical distancing, you should only arrive at the vaccination site 15 minutes before your appointment, but you should plan to stay on the site for 45 minutes.

Both the Government of Canada and the Government of Manitoba have information pages about vaccines. There you can find information about the vaccines that have been approved in Canada, a list of possible side effects and risks, and vaccination statistics.

The Government of Canada’s page can be viewed here, and Manitoba’s can be found at protectmb.ca.

Yes. The Government of Canada has made many of their resources about COVID-19 (such as fact sheets and videos) available in a number of languages other than English and French.

You can find links to these resources here.

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) may call you if they need to discuss your tax or benefit situation—for example, if you owe taxes, did not file a tax return, or . However, there are many scams out there involving a caller who pretends to be from the CRA in order to get personal or financial information from you.

Before giving any personal or financial information to a caller, you should first verify that they are actually calling from the CRA. To do this, you should:

• Ask for their name, phone number, and office location
• Check that the call you received was legitimate by contacting the CRA yourself and verifying the information the caller gave you.

There are also some “red flags” to look out for that could indicate the caller is a scammer. These include:

• The caller is asking you to pay with gift cards or cryptocurrency (like Bitcoin)
• The caller is asking you for information that would not be included on a tax return (such as a credit card number)
• The caller is contacting you by email, or asking you to respond by email. CRA will never ask you to provide personal information by email.
• The caller is telling you you must pay taxes on lottery or sweepstakes winnings.

For more information and other things to look out for, visit the Canada Revenue Agency website here.

The Manitoba government has provided a one-time refundable tax credit of $200 to Manitoba seniors. To qualify for this credit, you must:

• Be 65 years or older in 2020,
• Live in Manitoba in 2020, and
• File an income tax return as a Manitoba resident.

The government has mailed out advance payments of this credit to Manitoba seniors who filed a 2018 tax return. If you qualify but do not receive a cheque in May or June, you can claim the amount on your 2020 income tax return.

The federal government has also committed to a one-time, tax-free payment of $300 to seniors who are eligible for the Old Age Security (OAS) pension. An additional $200 will be available to seniors who are eligible for the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS). This payment will be applied automatically to seniors who are already receiving the OAS pension and GIS payments.

If you qualify for the OAS pension and/or GIS but have not been automatically enrolled, you may need to apply here:

https://www.canada.ca/en/services/benefits/publicpensions/cpp/old-age-security/apply.html

Yes, you are.  For the Sake of the Children is now being offered temporarily as an on-line course.

Information about the course

Course Materials

The Mental Health Virtual Therapy Program is available to all residents of Manitoba 16 years old and older who are experiencing mild to moderate anxiety symptoms as a result of COVID-19.   See Website

The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) has a Fact Sheet, COVID-19 Managing Financial Health, with information on the Canada Emergency Response Benefit, EI, Mortgage deferrals, family benefits, student loans and more:

View website.

There is a Community Financial Helpline providing information on COVID-19 financial supports, income supports, benefits and credits, and credit and debt counselling. They can be reached at:

1-431-813-4357

1-855-955-4234

The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada has a budget planner tool you can use:

Budget planner.

There is a Community Financial Helpline providing information on COVID-19 financial supports, income supports, benefits and credits, and credit and debt counselling. They can be reached at:

1-431-813-4357

1-855-955-4234

You should talk to your landlord and make arrangements. Evictions for not paying rent were suspended until September 30, 2020.

There is a Community Financial Helpline providing information on COVID-19 financial supports, income supports, benefits and credits, and credit and debt counselling. They can be reached at:

1-431-813-4357

1-855-955-4234

You may be able to get a mortgage deferral that will let you skip payments. You will still be charged interest. When the deferral period ends you will have to pay the deferred payments and interest along with your monthly payments. Ask your bank about the effect on your credit rating. For more information:

View website.

You can defer payment of these bills and your utilities will not be cut off. Late payment charges will not be charged for 6 months. The utilities are also prepared to make flexible payment plans.

As of September 6, 2022, most family matters are once again being held in person. COVID-19 protocols will still need to be followed. For more information, see the following notices:

https://www.manitobacourts.mb.ca/site/assets/files/1994/practice_direction_masters_2022.pdf

https://www.manitobacourts.mb.ca/site/assets/files/1994/qb_notice_-_adjustments_to_current_scheduling_protocols_march_7_2022_until_further_notice_2022_march.pdf

Starting March 7th, 2022, child protection trials, intake lists, and pre-trial conference lists will proceed in person. This will be the first step in a gradual lifting of restrictions that will end with a full return to pre-pandemic practices in September of 2022.

For more details, see the March 1st court notice here:

https://www.manitobacourts.mb.ca/site/assets/files/1994/qb_notice_-_adjustments_to_current_scheduling_protocols_march_7_2022_until_further_notice_2022_march.pdf