Good Evening Bermuda,
Firstly, I extend my heartfelt condolences to the families of the two persons who have passed away since our last press conference due to the coronavirus. Our thoughts and prayers are with their family and friends, and we continue to pray for those who are in hospital battling this disease.
I am joined tonight by the Minister of Health, the Hon. Kim Wilson who will provide an update to the country on our latest coronavirus test results, vaccinations statistics, including our Close to Home mobile vaccination initiative, and other matters from the Ministry of Health.
Following the Minister, I will reiterate key points regarding the mandatory supervised quarantine for non-immunised travellers and other matters.
We will also be joined tonight by the Government’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Ayo Oyinloye, and the Bermuda Hospital Board’s Chief of Staff, Dr. Wesley Miller.
First, we will hear from the Minister of Health…
Thank you Minister…
I thank you and your team at the Ministry of Health for your continued hard work and dedication to our country’s coronavirus response. Thank you to our teams at the vaccination centres, the testing teams at Perot, Bulls Head, Penno’s Wharf and Star of India, our Lab teams, doctors, nurses and hospital staff. I also thank all of those involved in our Close to Home mobile vaccination initiative, which has helped to make the vaccine even more accessible to those who choose to take it.
As the Minister of Health outlined, 65% of our eligible population have now received at least one dose of the vaccine. This means that two-thirds of adults who can be vaccinated have made the choice to do so, including the 868 people who have taken advantage of mobile vaccinations since they began.
Thanks to the work of our vaccination teams and the people of Bermuda, our country is 7th in the world for vaccinations per capita. We are grateful for what we have achieved thus far, and that our vaccination numbers will continue to increase and move us closer to our goal of Community Protection for Bermuda.
The Government continues to encourage persons to speak to their doctor to find out if the vaccine is medically safe for you, and discuss any questions you may have. We respect and appreciate that getting vaccinated is a personal choice, and should you decide to do so, we will continue to make it easily accessible for you.
Whether you chose to get vaccinated or if you chose not to, we all have a crucial role to play to reach Community Protection, eliminating local transmission and protecting our country from dangerous variants that could enter through our borders.
We have seen a decrease in new and active cases, and have successfully moved to Phase 2 of our reopening strategy. We have seen our local transmission 14 day average drop from 25 cases two weeks ago to 6 as of yesterday. However, we are still seeing unlinked cases reported and therefore we must not allow ourselves to become complacent and delay our move to Phase 3 which is envisioned to begin on June 6th.
This is an important point. We still have a lot of work to do, and as the Minister of Health said we are not out of the woods yet.
Please continue to take advantage of the free testing available to everyone at Penno’s Wharf in the East, and Star of India in the West to know your coronavirus status. Download the WeHealth app which can alert you of potential exposure, and if used by entire workplaces can prevent businesses from having to shut down and prevent persons not being able to work.
The Government will continue to support businesses and persons affected by mandatory closures. Persons who cannot work can still apply for the unemployment benefit at uba.gov.bm.
I remind businesses affected by mandatory closures to go to bedc.bm to apply for the COVID-19 Emergency Grant for small & medium-sized businesses. The Emergency Grants helps to cover immediate costs associated with recurring expenses including rent, utilities, social insurance, and health insurance premiums for employees.
As of May 5th, we have implemented stricter rules at our border to protect Bermuda from dangerous variants that exist in other countries. Currently all non-immunised travelers entering Bermuda will be required to quarantine for 4 days at home or on their tourism property pending the receipt of their Day 4 negative test.
All fully immunised travellers with a valid negative pre-test must quarantine until they receive their arrival test. Immunised travellers without a pre-test must quarantine at home until receiving a negative Day 4 test. All arriving travellers will continue to be tested on day 4, day 8 and day 14 following their arrival test.
From June 6, mandatory supervised quarantine for all non-immunised travellers will come into effect to strengthen our protection at our border against dangerous variants. Many members of the public have reached out to ask for clarification on who is exempt from supervised quarantine, so I will reiterate the key points from the Minister of National Security’s announcement last week regarding exemptions.
The following persons are exempt from mandatory supervised quarantine in a designated facility and therefore are allowed to quarantine at home:
1. Minors aged 17 years or younger travelling alone, parents travelling with a child 4 years old or younger.
2. Senior citizens aged 65 years or older will be able to apply to quarantine at home.
3. Persons who have a medical certificate from their Doctor, persons who are certified for essential medical travel & persons who are considered to be an essential medical companion for persons travelling for medical treatment will be able to apply to quarantine at home.
4. Residents who left Bermuda before May 6 and are unable to meet the requirements to be exempt due to the inability to access vaccinations overseas. This would apply to students or other Bermudians who are residing overseas temporarily and are returning to Bermuda on or after June 6th and therefore are unable to comply. Students or residents who cannot access vaccinations overseas will not be required to pay for supervised quarantine and can apply to quarantine at home.
5. A maximum of 2 parents or guardians escorting a minor to an educational institution will be able to apply to quarantine at home as this travel is considered essential travel akin to accompanying a family member for medical treatment.
If you do not fall under one of these categories and are not fully immunised, you will be subject, at this time to mandatory supervised quarantine from June 6th at your own expense. The Cabinet will consider final conditions and will make the final announcement regarding supervised and unsupervised quarantine at our press conference on Tuesday. There is still feedback on certain things that we want to consider and ensure we address every concern there.
The Government does realise that not everyone agrees with this policy, but what we can all agree on is that we want our schools and businesses to stay open, we want to be able to gather safely with our family and friends, and we want to see an end to all restrictions. It is clear that our country’s emotional health, our mental health, and our financial health cannot afford another lockdown, and that is why it is vital for us to take strong actions at our border.
To dispel some misinformation that has been spreading….The Government of Bermuda has never said that the persons who are not vaccinated must have their hotel stay paid for in advance of their departure from the island, or they will not be allowed to leave. This misinformation is dangerous and only sows division - at a time that this country needs unity. I understand it makes good marketing for a protest, and the lies are effective in getting people riled up, but it is not helpful as it is false and will cause unnecessary division in our community.
What the Minister of National Security said last week was that persons will be required to pre-pay for their accommodations, and there will be penalties if the prepayment does not happen. That is not prior to departure; it is prior to returning to the island. Full details will be outlined by the Minister of National Security when it comes to quarantine facilities and the Minister of Health when it comes to exemptions at our press conference next week.
We can also agree that we want to save lives and avoid more families having to mourn the loss of a loved one due to the coronavirus. Protecting ourselves at our borders and keeping dangerous and deadly variants off of our shores can help us achieve those aims. Unity and togetherness can help us achieve those aims. Though these decisions are difficult, the Government believes these are the best options and actions available to prevent dangerous variants from entering our country and setting us back as we have seen take place in many other countries around the world.
I also recognise there are growing concerns around vaccine status discrimination. I reiterate that vaccinations are a personal choice, and outside of the protections that are required at the border to keep new Dangerous variants out of Bermuda that could lead to another shutdown, there shouldn’t be different treatment locally. The Government has heard of some reports of businesses who have denied entry based on vaccinations status - and we will be issuing proper legal guidance to all at Tuesday’s press conference.
While the Government must make difficult decisions in the interest of public health, to eliminate local transmission and protect the country from dangerous variants, we will always support a person's right to choose whether or not they wish to get vaccinated. This includes in the workplace where the law does not allow employers to demand that their employees be vaccinated. In all workplaces, we want to make sure there is safety, and there will be further discussions with employers on how we make sure that testing can augment a safe environment like what is taking place at the hospital.
We are blessed to live in a diverse and free country. A country where each person has the right to express their views, their concerns and their beliefs. Even when our opinions differ, we must remember that the current battle that we are in is not between one Bermudian and another. The battle is Bermuda united against the coronavirus. The only way we can continue to move beyond the pandemic is to work together, unified in our efforts to keep our country moving toward the end of restrictions and back to the normality that we all are aiming for.
It is this Government’s honor to serve the people of Bermuda. I thank you not just for support, not just for cooperation, but for constructively holding this Government, your Government, accountable. We value your opinions, we hear your concerns, and we will continue to work to address them in this pandemic and also beyond it. I invite you to watch CITV, Government of Bermuda’s Facebook page or YouTube channel tonight at 8 pm. The Government’s Cabinet Ministers will be providing an overview of work taking place within their ministries as we continue to look beyond the pandemic.
As I close, I would like to make a correction from last week’s press conference. I mentioned receiving a very kind and supportive letter from a 9-year old Bermudian, which had made my day. I mistakenly called them Asia, but their name is Asa Mello. I am sure he and his family are watching so again I would like to again say thank you to Asa for your kind letter and the wonderful drawing of our country’s flag that you sent as well.
Thank you.