On March 13, 2020, the Québec government declared a
public health emergency in all the territory of the Province of
Québec due to the pandemic caused by the spread of COVID-19.
The government has the power to declare such an emergency under
s.118 of the Public Health Act CQLR c S-2.2
("PHA"):
118. The Government may declare a public health emergency in all
or part of the territory of Québec where a serious threat to
the health of the population, whether real or imminent, requires
the immediate application of certain measures provided for in
section 123 to protect the health of the population.
The declaration of this public health emergency enables the
Québec government to enact emergency measures without
further formality, as provided for in s.123 PHA: