While many families are eager to reunite with their loved ones on the other side of the border, a Windsor MP fears the cost of one requirement to re-enter Canada might be just too much to bear.
In a letter to the Prime Minister, Windsor West MP Brian Masse called on the federal government to cover the cost of PCR testing for Canadians.
"These tests cost approximately $150-$300 depending on where it is done, and quickly the results are needed," he wrote. "For example, a family of five crossing into the U.S. to reunite with their relatives that they have not seen in 19 months, it would cost them $750-$1,500. This is not affordable for most families."
He calls it a monetary barrier to crossing the border and said it would only continue the stress and anxiety families have suffered throughout the pandemic.
"While the need for virus monitoring and surveillance is necessary during a pandemic, the costs and burdens of this essential public health measure should not be shouldered by those that can least afford it or by families who have had to endure 19 months of separation with the attendant mental health and social impacts," implored Masse. "In the United States, PCR COVID-19 testing is provided for free at pharmacies, funded by the U.S. federal government. Accordingly, the Canadian federal government should fund PCR COVID-19 testing at no charge during the remainder of this pandemic."
Masse is just the latest to demand Ottawa change the requirement. Business groups on both sides of the border complain it will slow economic recovery.
The U.S. will reopen the border to Canadian visitors for the first time since March 2020, on Monday.
Canada reopened its border to American tourists on August 9.
* An earlier version of the story reported Masse wanted the federal government to scrap the requirement. WindsorNewsToday.ca regrets the error.
