It looks like any reopening that is set to take place in the province of Ontario will have to wait.
The health minister of Ontario announced Tuesday that any reopening will have to be halted for now. She is quite concerned about the latest spike in COVID-19 numbers. This is especially alarming given the fact that they have reopened schools and colleges.
Based on the recommendation of the Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr David Williams, the province of Ontario has pushed plans for reopening back for at least four weeks. After that period of time, the province will consider any scaling back of restrictions or reopening any businesses.
It was not an easy decision for Christine Elliott. She made clear that the priority is ensuring that all students are kept safe at school with regards to COVID-19. If COVID-19 breaks out in the local community, it could possibly mean that there will be an increased risk of a breakout within the schools. Thus, the priority is to limit the amount of COVID-19 cases within the community so that the children in schools can be protected.
Over the last two days, there has been a total of 375 positive COVID-19 cases within the province. The total number of cases on Monday and Tuesday are the highest since late July.
Furthermore, this is the 13th straight day that the total number of positive cases within a single day has reached triple digits. The majority of new COVID-19 cases within the province has primarily consisted of young adults.
Premier Doug Ford is also concerned with the increase in cases within other areas such as Ottawa as well as the Peel Region. Ottawa’s number of daily COVID-19 cases has slowly gone up in recent days. Over the last seven cases, Ottawa has averaged 159 cases per day. He feels that there are some folks who are still not taking this seriously. Ford pointed out that there were some large parties in multiple areas within this province. Needless to say, he is not happy about it. He also stressed the importance of curtailing the amount of cases within the province for the sake of the children that are returning to school.
As a result of this latest pause, there will not be an increase of social circles and gatherings. Additionally, there will be a halt to a potential increase in the amount of individuals that will attend athletic events.
