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But ministry officials have been unable to provide the Leader-Post with a documented plan for dealing with a potential coronavirus outbreak or even a report on the current state of preparations, beyond a pandemic plan last renewed in 2009-10 that the health ministry says it is updating.

The government confirmed Monday that there is no single preparedness document, but said officials have been briefing ministers and updating the provincial website.

On Monday, Moe again declined to rule out an early election — saying he may seek a mandate to govern — and wasn’t able to say how his party would adjust its campaigning activities to minimize the chances of an outbreak.

“We haven’t spoken with respect to what the details would be in a campaign, whenever that might be,” said Moe.

Huang worries that an election would increase risk for two reasons: It would bring people in close contact exactly when they should be staying far apart, and it would distract politicians at the moment they should be providing leadership to co-ordinate the provincial response.

“What I keep on thinking of is politicians doing photo ops in senior homes or pubs and then picking up babies, having kisses with babies and shaking hands, and I’m just like, ‘Ooooh no!’ ” said Huang.

According to Huang, the fact there have been no confirmed cases in the province is no cause for complacency. She noted it can take weeks for the disease to show symptoms, which may be too mild for people to report. She added that Saskatchewan has benefited from its wide geography and distance from major population centres.