NDP leader concerned about Eric Church concert in Saskatoon

It’s going to be the first large-scale event of its kind in Saskatchewan since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic — a concert with country star Eric Church attended by up to 15,000 people at SaskTel Centre on Saturday.

Anyone going to the concert will have to either have proof of double vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test within the last 72 hours, as per Saskatchewan’s public health orders. They will also have to wear a mask indoors unless eating or drinking.

Testing will also be available at the concert for a $25 fee for concertgoers.

But with COVID case counts throughout the province stubbornly sitting at an average of several hundred cases per day, and ICU admissions climbing, NDP Leader Ryan Meili says now’s not the time to be holding these kinds of events.

Meili says he got a call several days ago from someone whose surgery was cancelled, wondering why she couldn’t get the health care she needed but large gatherings were still allowed.

“It blew her mind that we are cancelling people’s surgeries — a surgery that for her is not elective; it’s absolutely necessary — but we’re still having these huge gatherings,” Meili said.

And he’s concerned about the sheer number of people that will be attending the concert.

“I think serious consideration should be given to cancelling that,” he said. “At the very least, anybody who’s attending Had better be vaccinated and masked and be very, very careful.

“Everybody wants to go enjoy concerts. Everybody wants to have some fun. But it’s not fun if you end up in the ICU as a result.”

The provincial government has said there aren’t any plans at this time to limit gathering sizes.

The presidents of both the Saskatchewan Medical Association and Canadian Medical Association say immediate limits to gathering sizes are needed, along with other measures, as a way to curb the spread of COVID-19 in Saskatchewan and to bring the case numbers under control.