PACP Committee Report

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APPENDIX A – SUPPLMENTAL INFORMATION FROM THE PUBLIC HEALTH AGENCY OF CANADA

In response to a question at the hearing, the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) provided the following information to the Committee in a letter.

The Agency’s compliance verification and enforcement program consists of a suite of activities that begin before a traveller leaves for Canada and continues until the traveller has fulfilled all their obligations under the Orders in Council.

Through the outcomes of compliance verification activities, such as calls and in-person visits, PHAC will determine a traveller’s level of risk for non-compliance.

Compliance verification calls

Travelers in quarantine receive a live agent call on Day 5 and Day 10. Travellers who do not complete their Day 8 tests are called again on Day 14.

For compliance verification calls, PHAC uses the compliance rating chart below to describe different traveller scenarios and their associated compliance rating:

PHAC RATING CHART FOR COMPLIANCE VERIFICATION CALLS

COMPLIANCE RATING	DESCRIPTION	COMPLIANCE SUMMARY
LOW	Traveller has a good understanding of isolation/quarantine practices and/or testing requirements; and Traveller has a cooperative attitude towards obligations	No indication of non-compliance
LOW - MEDIUM	Traveller has little understanding of isolation/quarantine practices and/or testing requirements; and Traveller has a cooperative attitude towards obligations	No indication of non-compliance
MEDIUM	PHAC is unable to establish contact with the traveller Examples: Traveller had not answered phone calls PHAC does not have a contact number for the traveller Traveller’s contact number is not functional in Canada	Unknown indication of non-compliance
HIGH	Traveller has no understanding of isolation/quarantine practices and/or testing requirements; and Traveller does not have a cooperative attitude towards obligations Examples Traveller refuses to answer questions posed by a screening officer Traveller is verbally indicating that they will not maintain quarantine / isolation and/or complete testing Traveller indicates they have left their place of quarantine/isolation and entered a public space: for example, went for groceries, went for a walk, went to school/work, entered any place where they have the potential to encounter other individuals 3rd party answers phone and indicates traveller is not home Traveller indicates he does not want to report symptoms daily Traveller refuses to do testing	Indication of non-compliance

Referrals for in-person compliance verification visits

Contracted security guards perform in-person compliance verification visits to travellers identified as a risk to breaching their quarantine requirements.

The primary screening functions used for identifying travellers for an in-person compliance verification visit is failure to adequately answer the compliance verification calls and failure to complete required testing (Day 1 or Day 8 tests).

Referrals to police of jurisdiction for quarantine compliance & enforcement

PHAC sends a daily list of travellers who are required to quarantine/isolate to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), which is then disseminated to local police for follow-up activities.

Based on a number of factors such as the outcome of compliance verification calls and on-site security contractor visits, each traveller is assigned a priority rating (high, medium, low).

High priority typically consists of: travelers who are non-compliant following a compliance call or an on-site security contractor visit, travelers who were identified as non-compliant at entry, and other prioritized travelers (such as those returning from a country with a high number of cases related to a variant of concern).
Medium priority typically consists of: travelers where contact cannot be established, travelers who were rated as medium priority following a compliance promotion call, travelers who are fully vaccinated and tested positive post-arrival;
Low priority typically consists of: no indication of non-compliance based on compliance promotion call, traveler entered Canada for compassionate reasons.

PHAC also sends Urgent Verification Requests (UVRs) to law enforcement when seeking a time-sensitive physical verification check on a traveller. For example, UVRs are used to urgently verify the compliance of travelers who state that they will not quarantine or who show disregard for the requirements of the Quarantine Act, thus posing a risk to public health. Traveller history of non-compliance, behaviour of the traveller and nature of the suspected non-compliance are key factors used to determine whether to request a UVR.

PHAC asks police of jurisdiction to, at a minimum, follow up with all UVRs and high priorities, as resources permit.