Ontario set to resume non-urgent surgeries on Monday
The province is set to resume some health services on Monday that were paused to preserve hospital capacity earlier this month.
Detailed in new regulations approved Thursday afternoon, the province said that it will be taking a “phased approach” to getting back on track with some surgeries that were halted in early January.
At the time, hospitals pivoted to prepare for a rapid increase of COVID-19 related hospitalizations that put pressure on the health care system.
The resumption of health care services includes non-urgent surgeries and procedures in pediatrics, diagnostic services, cancer screenings, some ambulatory clinics, private hospitals and independent health facilities.
However, officials warned that not all hospitals will immediately resume these procedures and that “hospitals will need to meet certain criteria.” Although, details on how this criteria would take shape were limited, apart from stating that selection would based on “local context and conditions.”
Also announced in the new regulations released on Thursday, the province said that individuals attending indoor events at a sporting or concert venue, a movie theatre, or other gaming establishments will be allowed to eat and drink, as long as they remain seated.
This comes as Ontario prepares to enter the first step of the latest reopening plan, which will allow restaurants and gyms to operate at 50 per cent capacity.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Video shows suspect setting Toronto-area barbershop on fire
Video of a suspect lighting a Richmond Hill barbershop on fire earlier this week has been released by police.
'I have the will to live': N.B. woman needs double lung transplant
A New Brunswick woman suffering from sarcoidosis, a disease that limits your lung capacity, is in need of a double lung transplant.
The kids from 'Mrs. Doubtfire are all SUPER grown up now, and we're not OK
The adorable trio of child actors from the 1993 classic comedy 'Mrs. Doubtfire,' which starred the late and great Robin Williams, are all grown up and looking back on their seminal time together.
Police officer hit by driver of fleeing vehicle in Toronto
York Regional Police say they are continuing to search for a suspect in an auto theft investigation who was captured on video running over a police officer in Toronto last month.
TD worst-case scenario more likely after drug money laundering allegations: analyst
TD Bank Group could be hit with more severe penalties than previously expected, says a banking analyst after a report that the investigation it faces in the U.S. is tied to laundering illicit fentanyl profits.
A Chinese driver is praised for helping reduce casualties in a highway collapse that killed 48
A Chinese truck driver was praised in local media Saturday for parking his vehicle across a highway and preventing more cars from tumbling down a slope after a section of the road in the country's mountainous south collapsed and killed at least 48 people.
Britney Spears 'home and safe' after paramedics responded to an incident at the Chateau Marmont, source tells CNN
A source close to singer Britney Spears tells CNN that the pop star is 'home and safe' after she had a 'major fight' with her boyfriend on Wednesday night at the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood.
Suter scores late goal, clinches series for Canucks
Pius Suter scored with 1:39 left and the Vancouver Canucks advanced to the second round of the NHL playoffs with a 1-0 victory over the Nashville Predators on Friday night in Game 6.
Premier Legault reiterates that McGill pro-Palestinian camp must be dismantled
Quebec Premier François Legault reiterated that the pro-Palestinian encampment at McGill University must be dismantled while police remain 'on the lookout for new developments.'