The Tribune

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Senior Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

CHIEF Medical Officer Dr Pearl McMillan said political gatherings should not be happening during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Her statement yesterday flies in the face of comments by Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis and Progressive Liberal Party Leader Philip “Brave” Davis, both of whom have suggested it is fine to host political events.

At first, Dr McMillan discussed political gatherings in terms of whether protocols are being followed.

But under persistent questioning during a Ministry of Health press conference yesterday, she said: “The Ministry of Health continues to make the recommendations that are based on the science and certainly our recommendations remain the same, there should not be gatherings that are above and beyond what is agreed upon in the Emergency Orders, as well as you need to wear your mask, you need to sanitise.

“Those types of gathering should not be occurring and certainly individuals have a responsibility to protect themselves and others by not availing themselves of such events, be they political, be they a party, be they a gathering of family. We have to continue to follow the public health measures, that is the only way we will be able to continue to move down the road of being in the position that we all want to be in the position of.”

Dr Minnis and Mr Davis have insisted that people adhere to health protocols during political events, but there have been clear examples of some people not wearing masks and some standing within six feet of each other. Some of the political events have had in excess of more than 50 people and COVID-19 ambassadors have not been policing the gatherings.

Meanwhile, various types of gatherings remain prohibited throughout the country – regardless of whether people wear masks or remain physically distant. Indoor dining remains prohibited, for example, regardless of a facility’s ability to follow health protocols.

Dr McMillan acknowledged that health officials are not monitoring political events.

“We make the recommendations for all groupings and we anticipate that the recommendations will be for all the Bahamas,” she said. “It’s nothing different, it’s nothing different for any particular grouping. When I say a club can wait, those kinds of things, it’s all about trying to give persons the opportunity to ensure they do not put themselves in positions that increase the likelihood to exposure or to exposing if they may be an asymptomatic carrier.”

Dr McMillan’s comments came after Health Minister Renward Wells noted that a “marked” increase in COVID-19 cases have been observed in New Providence, Grand Bahama and Eleuthera in recent weeks.

Asked about this, Dr McMillan did not indicate whether health officials are recommending further restrictions for those islands, instead saying that the public health recommendations for physical distancing and sanitization remain in place.

She also could not say whether the Bahamas will soon change travel visa requirements to allow fully vaccinated people to enter the country without producing a COVID-19 test. The US Centre for Disease Control has said that testing is not necessary for fully vaccinated people to be travel.

“Certainly I think considerations can be made along the lines of once persons are fully vaccinated (they can travel with fewer requirements) but we are not there as yet,” Dr McMillan said. “As we continue to move forward with out vaccination campaign, I anticipate that we will be in a position to review what the guidance is from countries such as the US, the CDC, and others, the World Health Organisation as it relates to travelers not needed to test but certainly where we are now currently, those measures will need to remain in place.”

On Tuesday, health officials recorded 26 new cases, bringing the country’s overall COVID-19 count to 9,296.