The Chief Administrative Officer for Piney says COVID-19 restrictions continue to have a disproportionately negative impact on local residents.

With travel between Canada and the USA all but prohibited, Martin Van Osch says access to timely health care through cross-border agreements with Minnesota has been temporarily suspended.

“Many of our residents have family physicians that are in Roseau, Minnesota that they can’t go and see at this point in time,” he details.

Though the border has been nearly impermeable for months, Van Osch says it was only the "critical level" restrictions in late October that hampered health care options in Piney.

“Our situation is unique,” he states. “And the problem is federal.”

As Van Osch understands it, only Piney and one other jurisdiction in all of Canada have medical agreements across the border. Being a part of that incredibly small minority makes it very difficult for Piney to be considered when the federal government makes sweeping policies with the safety of the whole country in mind.

The shuttered port of entry also means access to certain essential items is at an all-time low.

“Our local businesses certainly deserve a great deal of credit,” submits Van Osch. “Since COVID-19 hit, they’ve really changed their approach to meet the people’s needs out here. Our stores can provide a lot of essential goods, but they don’t provide everything and at some point individuals need to travel to Steinbach or Winnipeg to pick up what could be as simple as medical or hygiene items.”

A return trip from Piney to Steinbach is, at minimum, two hours of driving time which, for some, poses a formidable financial obstacle. The way Van Osch sees it, the most debilitating part of the province’s most recent restrictions is that they prevent people from helping each other in that capacity.“In these times where you can’t even carpool, those individuals who don’t have their own vehicles would be violating health orders to go and pick up certain items that our local stores are just unable to provide.”

Van Osch says his RM’s concerns have been brought before their local MLA Dennis Smook as well as Provencher MP Ted Falk. Both men have been understanding of their predicament, but Van Osch says any movement on the matter has been negligible.

While he is very much willing to do what needs to be done to protect the province from COVID-19 Van Osch wonders if certain exceptions cannot yet be made for his municipality.

“It’s a topic that is on people’s minds out here and it has placed a lot of challenges on a lot of people.”

Ultimately, Van Osch is hoping the province revisits the border issue when the rest of the critical level restrictions are reviewed on December 11th.