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The father of a high school student in Kamloops, B.C., who was sent home for wearing what was deemed an inappropriate outfit, says the incident was absurd and should not have happened. Chris Wilson's daughter Karis Wilson, 17, was wearing a knee-length black dress with lace trim over a full-sleeved white turtleneck. Source

TORONTO -- As a full-time pharmacy technician in a busy Toronto hospital, Tim MacFarlane has been on the front lines in the fight against COVID-19. But since February of last year, he’s also been living in his minivan after he became one of the roughly 235,000 Canadians who experience homelessness every year. Source

WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND -- New Zealand's success in battling the coronavirus has unleashed an unanticipated problem: skyrocketing house prices. When the pandemic first hit, most experts predicted house prices would fall. Instead, prices have risen by more than 19 per cent over the past year, putting them out of reach for many people wanting to buy their first home. Source

The U.S. government dropped drunk driving and reckless driving charges against Bruce Springsteen on Wednesday stemming from an incident in November, admitting that the rocker's blood-alcohol level was so low that it didn't warrant the charges. Springsteen pleaded guilty to a third charge, consuming alcohol in a closed area, Gateway National Recreation Area. Source

A real-world test of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine in more than half a million people confirms that it's very effective at preventing serious illness or death, even after one dose. Wednesday's published results, from a mass vaccination campaign in Israel, give strong reassurance that the benefits seen in smaller, limited testing persisted when the vaccine was used much more widely in a general population with various ages and health conditions. Source

U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday lifted a freeze on green cards issued by his predecessor during the pandemic that lawyers said was blocking most legal immigration to the United States. Former president Donald Trump last spring halted the issuance of green cards until the end of 2020 in the name of protecting the coronavirus-wracked job market — a reason that Trump gave to achieve many of the cuts to legal immigration that had eluded him before the pandemic. Source

A so-called unregistered "shadow" mortgage broker responsible for securing more than half a billion dollars' worth of home financing through the use of altered tax and bank documents says there will always be a demand for the services of people with his skills. Source

The World Health Organization should be given the power and independence it needs to report the facts about global health threats without being influenced by its member states, says New Zealand's former prime minister Helen Clark. "I think it's clear we need a stronger, more empowered WHO where they can feel emboldened to speak truth to power and do what needs to be done at the earliest possible opportunity," Clark told host Vassy Kapelos on CBC News Network's Power & Politics. Source

MONTREAL -- A man has been charged with sexual assault after an incident last week at a Montreal COVID-19 quarantine hotel. The woman alleging the assault told CTV News that the man came into her room, refused to leave, partially undressed and touched her against her will, only leaving when she threatened to scream. Source

EDMONTON -- Alberta recorded its largest daily increase in new COVID-19 cases since near the start of the month with 430 new infections reported on Wednesday. The increase in the largest in one day since the 582 reported on Feb. Source