TORONTO -- The Ford government is loosening the restrictions on long-term care homes and will now will permit residents to leave the facilities for overnight trips but only if management allows it.
In a news release issued on Friday, the province said that residents in long-term care homes will be able to leave for day trips or overnight absences, effective immediately.
The province say that all residents will be permitted to leave on day trips that do not include an overnight stay and will be able to return without the need to self-isolate.
In the case of trips that do require an overnight stay, the province says that it will be left to the discretion of individual homes “based on safety factors like the risk associated with the absence and ability of the home to help residents self-isolate upon return.”
They say that all residents returning from overnight absences will be required to self-isolate for 14 days “for the protection of their neighbours.”
Should the home refuse to grant permission for the overnight trip, they will be required to explain their rationale in writing.
“This is a day we have all looked forward to and it is my hope that these welcome changes will improve our residents' quality of life, while keeping them safe,” Minister of Long-Term Care Dr. Merrilee Fullerton said in a press release announcing the changes.
"As Ontarians begin to resume their pre-COVID activities, residents in long-term care will be able to get out and about in their communities and spend time with loved ones again."
Visits to long-term care homes were suspended at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March but resumed with restrictions in June.
Throughout the pandemic there have been a cumulative 411 COVID-19 outbreaks declared at Ontario’s 626 long-term care homes, though only a dozen of them are still considered active.
