Premiers Seek Billions in Federal Aid to Counter Impact of COVID-19

Alberta Premier Jason Kenney speaks reporters after a speech at the Rideau Club in Ottawa on Thursday, March 12, 2020. Kenney says the country needs additional fiscal stimulus “in the range of one per cent of GDP”—roughly $20 billion—to confront the health and economic impacts of the novel coronavirus. The Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick

OTTAWA—Concerns about his own exposure to COVID-19 forced Justin Trudeau to cancel a face-to-face meeting with first ministers but he'll still get an earful over the phone today from premiers demanding massive federal aid to confront the health and economic impacts of the novel coronavirus.

That aid could run to tens of billions of dollars.