The Province of Ontario has moved Durham Region back into the Red-Control Category of the Covid-19 Response Framework fromTuesday.
When: Red-Control restrictions go into effect on Tuesday, February 16, at 12:01 am and will be in effect for at least two weeks before re-evaluation. The stay-at-home order will end when this comes into effect.
Where: All eight municipalities in Durham Region.
What: The Red-Control category involves broad-scale measures and restrictions, across multiple sectors, to control transmission. For a full list of current restrictions, and business reopening guidelines, visit Ontario.ca/covidresponse.
Toronto, York, Peel in Stay-at-Home
The province yesterday announced that for North Bay Parry Sound District, Peel Public Health, Toronto Public Health and York Region Public Health, it is proposed that the shutdown measures and the Stay-at-Home order will continue to apply until at least Monday, February 22, 2021. Visit Ontario.ca/covidresponse for the full list of public health region classifications.
Recognizing the risk posed by new variants to the province’s pandemic response, Ontario is introducing an “emergency brake” to allow the Chief Medical Officer of Health, in consultation with the local medical officer of health, to immediately advise moving a region into Grey-Lockdown to interrupt transmission. Local medical officers of health also have the ability to issue Section 22 orders under the Health Protection and Promotion Act, to target specific transmission risks in the community.
Red – Control
Epidemiology
- Weekly incidence rate is 40 per 100,000 or more
- Percent positivity is 2.5% or more
- Rt is 1.2 or more
- Repeated outbreaks in multiple sectors and settings, increasing number of large outbreaks
- Level of community transmission and non-epi linked cases increasing
Health system capacity
- Hospital and ICU capacity at risk of being overwhelmed
Public health system capacity
- Public health unit capacity for case and contact management at risk or overwhelmed
“While the trends in public health indicators are heading in the right direction, we still have work to do,” said Dr. David Williams, Ontario Chief Medical Officer of Health. “Everyone is strongly advised to continue staying at home, avoid social gatherings, only travel between regions for essential purposes, and limit close contacts to your household or those you live with.”
Quick Facts
- Find out what level and which regional public measures are in place for your area.
- On February 10, 2021, Hastings Prince Edward Public Health, Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington Public Health, and Renfrew County and District Health Unit moved to the Framework at the Green-Prevent level.
- To help stop the spread of Covid-19 and safeguard health system capacity, Ontarians are strongly urged to continue staying at home and limit trips outside their household and between other regions for essential reasons only, not to gather with individuals outside of their household, and to wear a face covering when within two metres distance of another individual who is not part of their household (both indoor and outdoor) or when required, with limited exceptions.
- Ontario has implemented a six-point plan to deal with the new variants of concern which includes mandatory on-arrival testing of international travelers, enhanced screening and sequencing, maintaining public health measures to keep people safe, strengthening case and contact management to track the spread of new cases, enhanced protections for vulnerable populations, and leveraging the latest data to inform public health decisions.
- To support the province’s economic recovery, the government has updated the Framework to allow for a safer approach to retail. Limited in-person shopping in Grey-Lockdown zones will be permitted with public health and safety measures, such as limiting capacity to 25 per cent in most retail settings.
- Digital tools have been an important part of the provincial response to COVID-19. To date, almost 6 million self-assessments have been completed using Ontario’s health screening tool to help Ontarians navigate their symptoms and decide on next steps. Now, revised and updated screening tools for workers/employees and customer/visitors will help keep Ontarians safe and healthy by pre-screening for symptoms before leaving for work or to visit a business as the province re-opens. The tools help workplaces and businesses meet screening requirements.
- To support the safe return of in-person learning, Ontario has introduced new measures to continue to protect students and staff against COVID-19 in the classroom.