Ontario unveils new COVID-19 restriction guidelines as cases hit a record 1,050
Pandemic restrictions will ease Saturday in Peel, York and Ottawa and Nov. 14 in Toronto under new guidelines outlining when Ontario's 34 public health units should tighten or lighten COVID-19 measures.
That means indoor dining can resume and gyms and theatres can reopen - but with additional protective measures such as no alcohol served after 9 p.m. and three metres of distance between people exercising, up from two metres.
We have to be super, super cautious," Premier Doug Ford said Tuesday. By no means does this mean we let our guard down."
Using five colour-coded categories from best to worst - or prevent" to lockdown" - the detailed framework was promised by the premier last week.
It sets out when action needs to be taken in various segments of the economy from restaurants to malls, theatres and gyms and forecasts lab testing of 100,000 nasal swabs daily by December, roughly double the current capacity.
People want certainty," Ford said, calling the guidelines an early warning system" that will help keep better track of when a health unit is heading into deeper trouble with the virus.
The framework is designed to provide more clarity on thresholds for public health measures but leaves room for judgement calls by Ontario's chief medical officer Dr. David Williams and his local counterparts.
Graduated measures should be targeted and informed by regional circumstances," according to the 20-page plan released Tuesday as Ontario set a record with 1,050 new cases of COVID-19, up 102 from the previous day.
To avoid daily fluctuations, the five categories use local criteria over the previous week on the number of cases per 100,000 population, the percentage of people tested who are positive, the viral reproduction rate, outbreak levels, hospital and intensive care capacity, and timely contact tracing capability.
For example, to be at the lowest level of restrictions a health unit must have fewer than 10 cases per 100,000 and a positivity rate below 1 per cent, meaning no more than 1 in 100 people tested are positive.
At the lowest level of concern, green or prevent," there are few restrictions as in Stage 3 with highest risk settings remaining closed, rising through yellow or protect" with enhanced enforcement and fines for transgressors to intermediate measures in the orange or restrict" phase where some actions are taken but business closures avoided as much as possible.
The fourth stage, red or control" is akin to the modified Stage 2 that Toronto, Peel, Ottawa and York are now in with indoor dining and gyms and theatres closed with restrictions the most severe available" before the final gray or lockdown" mode.
Under the red or fourth stage, the weekly rate is 100 or more per 100,000 population and the positivity rate a high 10 per cent.
Under data collected as of Oct. 26, Toronto, York, Peel, Ottawa and the Eastern Ontario health units would be moved to the lesser orange or restrict" stage while Halton, Durham, Hamilton and Brant County health units would be in the yellow or protect" category, with Ontario's remaining regions including London and Kingston in green or prevent."
Officials said the status of all health units will be reviewed and updated based on the latest data on Friday when 28 days of modified Stage 2 restrictions come to an end in Toronto, Peel and Ottawa.
Those decisions will be made by Ford and his cabinet on the advice of Williams.
Rob Ferguson is a Toronto-based reporter covering Ontario politics for the Star. Follow him on Twitter: @robferguson1four