The COVID-19 WEAAD Global Overview

From: HELP AGE INTERNATIONAL

• Older people's health and lives have been at particular risk from COVID-19
•  Their rights have also been denied
•  Many governments have introduced restrictions on movement based specifically on older age, denying older people their rights to equal access  to livelihoods, care and support, pensions and treatment for other health conditions.
•  Age has been used to deny older people equal access to scarce medical resources, such as ventilators, to treat COVID-19
•  The rights of older people in care homes have been treated with disregard, resulting in catastrophic numbers of deaths.

Local/Canadian Context

• In 2020 RECAA acknowledged world elder abuse with a petition « stop the deaths » signed by over a thousand citizens and sent to premier Legault, health minister Christian Dubé and minister responsible for seniors and caregivers Margaret Blais.
• In Canada and Quebec our older adults in Long Term Care Facilities died in excess above the  overall population.
• Many older adults died unnecessarily due to inadequate health care systems which collapsed during the pandemic