COVID-19 on P.E.I.: What's happening Wednesday, July 15

Health PEI has set up a mobile COVID-19testing clinic atStoneparkIntermediate School to go along with the testing site at the Eastlink Centre.

The province said the clinic was set up tosupport increased testing related to Queen Elizabeth Hospital staff and other related contacts.

It said the Stonepark clinic willrun for at least the next couple of weeksand thenbe re-evaluated.

At a briefing Wednesday morning, P.E.I. Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Heather Morrison saidall tests have come back negativeso far in connection with a cluster of COVID-19 cases at the QEH.

The Native Council of P.E.I. says a court case forced the federal government to reconsider pandemic funding for non-reserve Indigenous groups.

Health PEI has contingency plans to move the emergency department at the QEH if a COVID-19 outbreak makes that necessary, says Health Minister James Aylward.

Riders are starting to return to T3 transit after a massive drop early in the pandemic.

P.E.I. will not even begin to think seriously about expanding beyond the Atlantic bubble before August, says Premier Dennis King.

None of the news could be called good, but a Statistics Canada report shows P.E.I. businesses have performed relatively well in some respects during the pandemic, and relatively poorly in others.

P.E.I. Chief Public Health Officer said she was inspired by the gift of a mosaic made up of pictures taken by thousands of Islanders.

Prince Edward Island has one new COVID-19 case,an essential worker in his 30s who travelled internationally recently.

About 20 people gathered in Charlottetown to draw attention to the struggle of seniors in P.E.I.'s long-term care facilities throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

Fishermen on P.E.I. are hoping the lobster industry will be better in the fall than it was in the spring.

P.E.I.'s tourism industry lost more than $27 million in direct earnings with the cancellation of the cruise ship season this year,the CEO of Port Charlottetown estimates.

Also in the news

• Contact tracing and testing is underway on the previousnew case of COVID-19, a man in his 40s who is a health-care worker in the emergency department at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Charlottetown.
• The COVID-19 pandemic has shown what can be possible with regard to a basic income guarantee on P.E.I., says the chair of the legislative committee on poverty.
• Small businesses are making adjustments asmask recommendations change, setting protocols for employees, seeking suppliers, and even offering discounts to mask-wearing customers.
• Health PEI told employees in an email earlier this week thatall staff who come in contact with patients and who aren't able to physically distance must now wear medical masks.

Further resources

• Here isinformation for livingwith the COVID-19 pandemic on P.E.I. including information on government relief programs, physical distancing measures, and essential health services.
• Here is achart tracking COVID-19 numbers and a timeline of COVID-19-related events on P.E.I.

More COVID-19 stories from CBC P.E.I.