Border closures should only be implemented as a last resort, according to a report on a York University Study in the Toronto Star. The study used real-time data from 166 countries to evaluate the impact of “targeted”- defined as closures that restrict travellers from either a specific country or region - and “total” closures referring to the restriction of foreign nationals’ entry except for essential travel.
The survey found Canada’s implementation of a total border closure during the first wave of the pandemic did help slow the domestic and worldwide spread of COVID-19.
But the researchers note that border closures in Canada and around the world were more knee-jerk actions based on broad international political rather than scientific consensus. “It would help to have some kind of co-ordinating mechanism preferably through WHO that can help countries decide when is a good time to put a border closure in place and when is not,” one researcher said. New international negotiations through WHO about pandemic response are underway.
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