Inuit concerned about potential spread of COVID-19 in North

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OTTAWA -- The Inuit Circumpolar Council says if the novel coronavirus spreads to the North, communities in Canada, Alaska and Greenland are at a much higher risk of exposure because of a chronic lack of basic infrastructure and resources.

The group says the Inuit must be considered in government responses because of the potential compounding threat to basic health and well-being in those communities.

The ICC says many communities lack sewers and running water, putting people at greater risk of contracting the virus and its accompanying respiratory disease, COVID-19.

They have also called on governments to close those infrastructure gaps to protect against future health threats.

NDP leader Jagmeet Singh wrote a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Friday, urging him to make sure Indigenous and Inuit communities are not disproportionately affected if a widespread outbreak of the virus hits Canada.

The NDP says Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller should be on the new COVID-19 cabinet committee struck earlier this week to provide an all-government approach to combating the virus.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 6, 2020.

RELATED IMAGES A stop sign in English, French and Inuit is seen in Iqaluit, Nunavut on April 25, 2015. The Inuit Circumpolar Council says if the novel coronavirus spreads to the north its communities in Canada, Alaska and Greenland are at a much higher risk of exposure because of a chronic lack of basic infrastructure and resources. The group says the Inuit must be considered in the government's national and regions response and preparedness plans for coronavirus and the potential compounding threat to basic health and well-being in those communities. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson