Ontario has entered another wave of COVID-19, experts say
Ontario has entered another wave of COVID-19, experts say
Ontario has entered a summer wave of COVID-19 as hospitalizations and wastewater data slowly creep upwards, infectious diseases experts say.
“We’re in one. It’s the real deal. I don't know how big it’s going to get, but it’s here,” Toronto infectious diseases specialist Dr. Isaac Bogoch told CTV News Toronto on Monday.
Bogoch points to COVID-19 wastewater data as a central indicator. Throughout June, this data has been ticking upward. It follows a steep drop in viral activity discovered in Ontario wastewater through most of the spring.
Along with wastewater, Bogoch points to an increase in the number of people testing positive for COVID-19. While testing is limited, the seven-day average for new cases detected through PCR testing was up 34 per cent week-over-week in the province’s most recent data.
“That's been a very reliable indicator, even though we're not testing broadly,” Bogoch said. “We're at least testing consistently.”
He said that hospitalizations, which are a lagging indicator of COVID-19’s spread, are also seeing an increase. The latest data from the government said there are 585 people in Ontario hospitals testing positive for the virus, up from 486 a week earlier.
“This is largely driven by the BA.5 sublineage of Omicron. We know that it's probably the dominant variant right now in most of Canada. And it has the ability to wriggle through some of the protective immunity that we would get from vaccination or recovery from infection,” he said.
Back in May, Dr. Kieran Moore, the province’s chief medical officer of health, predicted a "low level of endemic activity" throughout the summer followed by higher transmission in the fall due to an increase of indoor activities. But since then, BA.5 – the subvariant with the fastest growth rate – has rapidly spread in Ontario.
Dr. Sumon Chakrabarti, an infectious diseases specialist in Mississauga, said while BA. 5 has largely taken hold of the country, the timing of this wave is worth noting.
“In the summertime, the health-care system is much better equipped to deal with this and absorb it,” he said.
Compared to the Omicron wave in December, Chakrabarti said he doesn’t expect to see that same magnitude.
“We just have to remember the nature of respiratory viruses, especially when they become a tad more transmissible and they become more immune evasive. There is an equilibrium that forms between the community and the virus and you see this wave activity,” Chakrabarti explained.
“This wave is going to be a different one and it’s not the same kind of intensity as the previous ones were.”
When speaking to CP24 on Monday afternoon, the scientific director for Ontario's COVID-19 Science Advisory Table, did not confirm Ontario was specifically in another wave of the pandemic, saying only that "the virus has proven to be a really terrible adversary."
"It has mutated to the extent that what is currently circulating now in Ontario, in Canada, and the world is almost unrecognizable compared to what we originally saw," Dr. Fahad Razak said. "What happens in the future, it's really unclear."
"The fall will be a high-risk period for us though, because it's not just COVID. It's the other respiratory viruses like influenza, RSV, so we need to be aware of that," he said.
Razak urged residents to continue to get their COVID-19 vaccine in order to better protect themselves from the virus.
Canada's year-over-year inflation rate slowed to 7.6 per cent in July, with the deceleration largely driven by a decline in gas prices. The inflation rate hit a nearly 40-year-high of 8.1 per cent in June, but economists were widely expecting inflation to have since slowed.
The next time the Bank of Canada raises interest rates on the scheduled date of September 7, 2022, it could potentially trigger a recession. Although there may be a chance that we don’t enter into a recession and the BoC is still hoping for a soft landing, it’s best to be prepared. Contributor Christopher Liew explains how.
Massive explosions and fires hit a military depot in Russia-annexed Crimea on Tuesday, forcing the evacuation of more than 3,000 people, the second time in recent days that the Ukraine war's focus has turned to the peninsula.
One-quarter of front line employees surveyed at Canada's border agency said they had directly witnessed a colleague discriminate against a traveller in the previous two years.
Minister of Families, Children and Social Development of Canada Karina Gould is discouraging people from making fake travel plans just to skip the line of those waiting for passports.
Two of the people behind an accusation of political interference in the investigation of the April 2020 mass shooting in Nova Scotia will be before a House of Commons committee Tuesday.
As heat waves become more common and extreme due to the effects of climate change, the data centres that provide the backbone for the online services the public relies on are at risk of overheating.
Some energy experts warn a deal to sell Canadian hydrogen to Germany will serve as only a small, far-off and expensive part of the solution to Europe's energy crisis.
While many Canadians don’t support moving away from the metric system of measurement, many continue to use imperial measurements in their daily lives, according to a recent online poll.
Quebec health authorities are launching another COVID-19 booster vaccination campaign on Monday, targeting people living in CHSLDs and private seniors' residences (RPAs). The recommended interval between baseline vaccination and a first booster dose is three months or more, while the suggested interval between each subsequent booster dose is five months or more.
Unionized bus drivers say children may have difficulty getting to school once the academic year starts if the Quebec government continues to refuse to increase funding.
With one week to go before the start of the new school year, the CSQ is concerned that some CEGEPs will be unable to offer certain services and even some courses due to a lack of staff.
Canada's year-over-year inflation rate slowed to 7.6 per cent in July, with the deceleration largely driven by a decline in gas prices. The inflation rate hit a nearly 40-year-high of 8.1 per cent in June, but economists were widely expecting inflation to have since slowed.
Lisa LaFlamme is leaving CTV News. The network announced today that the Chief Anchor and Senior Editor is departing after more than 30 years with the company.
A 72-year-old downtown Sudbury businessman has entered the pool of candidates running for mayor in the City of Greater Sudbury, bringing the number of contenders to nine.
Canada's year-over-year inflation rate slowed to 7.6 per cent in July, with the deceleration largely driven by a decline in gas prices. The inflation rate hit a nearly 40-year-high of 8.1 per cent in June, but economists were widely expecting inflation to have since slowed.
An Ottawa family has adopted two beagles that were among thousands freed from a facility in Virginia that was breeding them so they could be sold for drug experiments.
A proposed correctional facility in Kemptville, Ont. has some residents concerned about how it might change the look of their small town and they are taking steps to prevent it from happening.
One-quarter of front line employees surveyed at Canada's border agency said they had directly witnessed a colleague discriminate against a traveller in the previous two years.
Canada's year-over-year inflation rate slowed to 7.6 per cent in July, with the deceleration largely driven by a decline in gas prices. The inflation rate hit a nearly 40-year-high of 8.1 per cent in June, but economists were widely expecting inflation to have since slowed.
Trans Power Utility has closed Minet's Point Road to install a new road crossing to support the Regional Express Rail Expansion planned for the Barrie GO corridor.
The Saint John Police Force says skeletal remains found in a remote area of the city’s east end Friday belong to 32-year-old Kyle Richard Leblanc, who was reported missing in December of 2020.
Two of the people behind an accusation of political interference in the investigation of the April 2020 mass shooting in Nova Scotia will be before a House of Commons committee Tuesday.
At about noon, Colchester County District RCMP responded to a report of a man exposing himself after approaching two children on a trail behind an elementary school on Salmon River Road.
Canada's year-over-year inflation rate slowed to 7.6 per cent in July, with the deceleration largely driven by a decline in gas prices. The inflation rate hit a nearly 40-year-high of 8.1 per cent in June, but economists were widely expecting inflation to have since slowed.
Southern Manitoba municipalities are gearing up for fall elections, but in areas where the current mayor or reeve is not running, some communities could be short on candidates.
Canada's year-over-year inflation rate slowed to 7.6 per cent in July, with the deceleration largely driven by a decline in gas prices. The inflation rate hit a nearly 40-year-high of 8.1 per cent in June, but economists were widely expecting inflation to have since slowed.
A Vancouver couple was in awe and a bit scared during an hours-long encounter with a whale on B.C.'s Central Coast, much of which they captured on video.
Canada's year-over-year inflation rate slowed to 7.6 per cent in July, with the deceleration largely driven by a decline in gas prices. The inflation rate hit a nearly 40-year-high of 8.1 per cent in June, but economists were widely expecting inflation to have since slowed.
