Today’s coronavirus news: Ontario reporting 639 new cases of COVID-19 and 0 deaths; Jays fans attending games will have to provide proof of full vaccination or a negative test
The latest coronavirus news from Canada and around the world Monday. This file will be updated throughout the day. Web links to longer stories if available.
10:48 a.m. All New York City public school teachers and other staffers will have to get vaccinated against the coronavirus, officials said Monday as the nation's largest school system prepares for classes to start next month.
The city previously said teachers, like other city employees, would have to get the shots or get tested weekly for the virus. The new policy marks the first no-option vaccination mandate for a broad group of city workers in the nation's most populous city, though Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Friday that coaches and students in football, basketball and other high-risk" sports would have to get inoculated before play begins.
Now, about 148,000 school employees - and contractors who work in schools - will have to get at least a first dose by Sept. 27, according to an announcement from the Democratic mayor and the city health and education departments.
The city hasn't immediately said what the penalty will be for refusing, or whether there will be exemptions. The previous vaccinate-or-test requirement had provisions for unpaid suspensions for workers who didn't comply.
10:18 a.m. Ontario is reporting 639 new cases of COVID-19 and no deaths; 515 cases are in individuals who are not fully vaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status and 124 are in fully vaccinated individuals. In Ontario, 20,489,564 vaccine doses have been administered. 82.2 per cent of Ontarians 12+ have one dose and 74.9 per cent have two doses, according to Health Minister Christine Elliott.
19,866 were conducted Sunday, with a 2.8 per cent positivity.
10:10 a.m. Nova Scotia's back-to-school plan and an update on potential further reductions to public health measures are expected to be released Monday.
Premier-designate Tim Houston and chief medical officer of health, Dr. Robert Strang, are to make the announcement and Premier Iain Rankin is also invited to attend following his government's defeat in last Tuesday's provincial election.
Last week, New Brunswick released its back-to-school plan, which requires all school staff to be fully vaccinated or to undergo regular testing, while masks will still be required in common areas and on school buses.
The release of Nova Scotia's back-to-school plan comes amid a steady rise in COVID-19 cases over the past week and two weeks before the scheduled reopening of schools on Sept. 7.
Two weeks ago, Strang sent a letter to parents urging them to ensure their children are fully vaccinated before returning to school.
The final step of the province's five-phase reopening plan would lift restrictions and mandatory measures, however it requires 75 per cent of the province's population to be fully vaccinated before it is implemented.
10 a.m. The Ontario government is extending a wage increase for personal support workers brought in during the pandemic.
The province says the temporary $3-per-hour wage increase for workers in long-term-care homes and similar facilities will now continue until Oct. 31.
It says extending the program will cost $169 million.
The pay bump was first put in place last October and had since been extended until Monday.
Premier Doug Ford last month committed to maintaining the change, but did not give further details or say for how long.
The province says some 158,000 workers are eligible for a pay boost under the program.
9:45 a.m. (updated) Proof of full vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test will be required for all fans, staff and guests attending Blue Jays games starting Sept. 13.
The organization, which returned to Rogers Centre in late July after nearly two years playing south of the border because of coronavirus pandemic-related restrictions, announced the additional protocols Monday after consulting with live event industry partners and public health experts, listening to fan feedback, and adapting to the changing environment."
Fans must provide a piece of government-issued identification and a receipt of a full COVID-19 vaccination received at least 14 days prior to the day of the game or a negative COVID-19 test result from a health care provider taken within 48 hours of the game's scheduled start time.
Read the full story from the Star's Laura Armstrong
9:26 a.m. Justin Trudeau is promising Monday that a re-elected Liberal government will spend billions in the coming years to hire family doctors
The Canadian Medical Association estimates about five million Canadians don't have a primary care physician, or family health-care team, which has spillover effects into other parts of the health-care system.
Among those trickle-down effects is people going to emergency departments, already stretched by the COVID-19 pandemic, for issues a family doctor could manage.
Trudeau says the Liberals would spend $3 billion over four years starting in 2022 to hire 7,500 family doctors, as well as tax and student loan incentives for health professionals who set up shop in rural or remote communities.
He is also pledging an extra $6 billion to wrestle with wait lists.
9:10 a.m. So you think this COVID-19 thing is over or even under control?
Think again.
With numbers rising alarmingly in Ontario and other locales with their heads stuck firmly in the sand (hello, Alberta!) comes news that this week's CFL game here is being postponed.
And, yeah, it's got to with an outbreak among the Edmonton Elks and nothing to do with Argonauts, it's still a sign that country-wide a return to regular sports is not a guaranteed thing.
I bring this up because while I remain dead certain that the NBA season here will unfold with games at the Scotiabank Arena, I am not at all certain today what those games will look like.
The worst - absolute worst - possible scenario would be to have those games played in empty arena and, watching the numbers here, I don't think we can completely discount that possibility.
9 a.m. On the day it was set to expire, Ontario has extended the hourly wage boost for personal support workers in nursing homes and other settings to Oct. 31.
8:40 a.m. This fall, Canada's largest commercial theatre company is set to relaunch its first full season since the pandemic began, mounting shows at all four of its Toronto venues.
What Mirvish Productions thought was going to be a brief four-week shutdown of its theatres in March 2020 ended up being a 16-month-long hiatus, thanks to the pandemic.
Although the company did put up an indoor audio-based stage show of its production Blindness" at the Princess of Wales Theatre in August, this marks the return of its full season of productions, complete with 11 plays.
The company has decided to allow only fully vaccinated people in its venues, be that onstage, backstage or in the audience, the company said in a statement.
Read the full story from the Star's Akrit Michael
7:55 a.m. An outspoken epidemiologist on the COVID-19 science and modelling tables advising the Ontario government has resigned, hinting at tension with other scientists and saying the province needs a public health system that is arm's length from politics."
Dr. David Fisman of the University of Toronto's Dalla Lana School of Public Health tweeted his resignation letter Monday morning.
I do not wish to remain in this uncomfortable position, where I must choose between placid relations with colleagues on the one hand, and the necessity of speaking truth during a public health crisis on the other," he wrote in the letter dated Friday.
Read the full story from the Star's Rob Ferguson
7:45 a.m. Toronto has now administered more than 4,500,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses. As of Aug. 23, 4,514,111 vaccine doses have been administered in the city.
7:25 a.m. Premier John Horgan, along with the health minister and provincial health officer, will be holding a briefing on COVID-19 vaccinations in British Columbia Monday afternoon.
Specific details on the update or what would be announced were not immediately available.
Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said Friday that B.C. may not be able to move to the next step in its COVID-19 restart plan as quickly as expected.
The comment comes as case counts surge in the Interior Health region, forcing officials to expand restrictions currently in place in the central Okanagan, such as mandatory mask wearing and reduced limits on indoor and outdoor events, across the entire region.
British Columbia reported 663 new cases of COVID-19 Friday. More than half of the 6,345 active cases were in the Interior Health region.
Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix attributed the spike in cases in the Interior to lower vaccination rates.
The displacement of many residents ordered out of their homes because of wildfires has made containing COVID-19 especially challenging, Henry said.
7:20 a.m. At the height of the third wave, anywhere from 2,000 to 3,000 people a week came through the doors of the COVID-19 assessment centres operated by the Ontario health team on Toronto's east side.
The manager of those testing centres expects the numbers to go even higher after schools open up this fall.
We're expecting a lot more tests, especially with the pediatric population not being eligible for vaccines yet," says Phillip Anthony, manager of the East Toronto Mobile Vaccination Strategy at Michael Garron Hospital, a member of the East Toronto health team. We envision there will be a lot of testing coming from that population," he said, referring to students younger than 12.
Read the full story from the Star's Patty Winsa
6 a.m.: Vietnam's largest metropolis, Ho Chi Minh City, went into a tightened lockdown Monday to battle its worst outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, just a day ahead of the arrival of U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris on a state visit.
The city has mobilized police and army troops to enforce the lockdown and to deliver food as well as necessities to each household, city authorities announced. Under the stricter measures imposed for at least two weeks, people in high risk" districts are not allowed to leave their homes.
On Sunday evening, just hours before the intensified lockdown went into effect, the ministry reported 737 virus deaths, its highest single-day total, increasing the death toll since the pandemic began to 8,277, most in the southern region.
Harris is scheduled to hold talks with Vietnamese leaders, including Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on the COVID-19 situation, as well as regional security issues and economic co-operation, the state-owned Tuoi Tre newspaper reported.
Her visit will be to the capital, Hanoi, which is more than 1,100 kilometres (700 miles) north of Ho Chi Minh City but is also under lockdown.
Monday 5:58 a.m.: Indonesia's anti-graft court sentenced a former Cabinet minister to 12 years in prison on Monday after finding him guilty of bribery related to the government's distribution of coronavirus aid.
Former Social Affairs Minister Juliari Peter Batubara was arrested in December after he turned himself in to the Corruption Eradication Commission, hours after its chairman publicly called on him to surrender.
His arrest came a day after the commission foiled an attempt to hand over seven suitcases and backpacks containing $1.3 million in cash to ministry officials. He was immediately dismissed by President Joko Widodo.
The case drew a public outcry as Indonesia struggles to combat corruption and tackle the profound health and economic impact of the coronavirus.
The corruption court ruled that Batubara was guilty of abusing his power by enriching himself and other officials. It also ordered him to pay a 500 million rupiah ($34,690) fine, and said he would be subject to another six months' imprisonment if he fails to pay.