Is Ontario ready to ‘live with COVID-19’?
The majority of Ontario’s pandemic restrictions have now been lifted and it seems, as politicians and health experts have predicted, the population is starting to “learn to live with COVID-19.”
But what does that really mean? Is Canada, or even Ontario, truly in a position to go about life as normal? What does this mean for those who are immunocompromised? Doe this mean the pandemic is over?
The phrase “learn to live with COVID-19” was first used in Ontario by Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kieran Moore in late January.
"We have let our lives be controlled for the last two years in a significant amount of fear and now we are going to have to change some of that thinking," he said at the time.
"I think we have to start to understand we have to learn to live with this virus.”
The phrase has since been used by other health officials and politicians as Ontario inches further into its reopening.
On this week’s episode of Life Unmasked, the team speaks with Dr. Peter Jüni, the scientific director of Ontario’s COVID-19 Science Advisory Table, about what it really means to “live with COVID-19.”
He stressed that while public health trends have improved over the past few months, the pandemic is not over and that a cautious approach is still necessary. It's possible, Jüni warned, that measures such as masking and proof of vaccination may need to be implemented again if a new variant of concern is identified or if the province’s health-care system is burdened.
This is the last regularly scheduled episode of Life Unmasked, but the podcast team will be back to address your questions should there be a significant development in the pandemic.
Old episodes of Life Unmasked can be found on the iHeart radio app and other podcast streaming platforms. If you have a question about COVID-19 or want to reach the team, send an email to lifeunmasked@bellmedia.ca.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'The world is too messy for bureaucratic hurdles': Canada still bars Afghanistan aid
Ottawa has plans to finally stop blocking Canadian development aid to Afghanistan this year.
Student anti-war protesters dig in as faculties condemn university leadership over calling police
Students protesting the Israel-Hamas war at at universities across U.S., some of whom have clashed with police in riot gear, dug in Saturday and vowed to keep their demonstrations going, while several school faculties condemned university presidents who have called in law enforcement to remove protesters.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Cisco reveals security breach, warns of state-sponsored spy campaign
State-sponsored actors targeted security devices used by governments around the world, according to technology firm Cisco Systems, which said the network devices are coveted intrusion points by spies.
I just don't get Taylor Swift
It's one thing to say you like Taylor Swift and her music, but don't blame CNN's AJ Willingham's when she says she just 'oesn't get' the global phenomenom.
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.