Will Ontario bring back restrictions to battle the summer COVID-19 wave?
Ontario’s top doctor says the province is not planning on bringing back public health measures like mask mandates across the province.
This comes as Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kieran Moore said he anticipates Ontario reaching the peak of its current wave in the next two weeks. He described the wave as moving at a “slower trajectory” with “less severe” outcomes.
“No, we're not considering recommending to the government any further public health measures,” Moore said on Wednesday at his first press conference since dropping the province’s mask mandate.
However, Moore said if he witnesses COVID-19 threatening the province’s health care system and impeding on its ability to provide urgent care, he would act in accordance.
“If that is threatened, we would make recommendations,” he said.
At the current moment, Moore said Ontario is not at that point.
“That’s a contingency for the fall. It’s certainly not a contingency for the present,” he said.
Currently, the top doctor said roughly 70 per cent of Ontario’s intensive care unit (ICU) beds are being utilized. Moore said that translates to 119 people in the province in the ICU. According to Ministry of Health projections, that’s anticipated to increase in the next two weeks.
When it comes to Ontarians’ wearing masks indoors and on public transit, Moore called what he has witnessed “pretty cautious.”
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“Many people my age continue to wear a mask and I think that's brilliant,” he said.
His remarks come as the province opens up eligibility for fourth COVID-19 vaccine doses to all adults aged 18 and up this week.
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