Just over 59,000 tests were processed by Ontario over the past 24 hours, resulting in a test positivity rate of 29.2 per cent.
Ontario recorded 20 more deaths linked to COVID-19 today, the highest single-day death toll logged since late May, as virus-related hospitalizations continue to climb in the province.
According to the latest data, there are now 2,279 COVID-19 patients receiving treatment in hospital in Ontario, up from 2,081 on Wednesday.
The province says of the patients currently receiving treatment in hospital, 319 are in intensive care, up from 200 just seven days ago. Officials say 232 patients in the ICU are not fully vaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status and 87 are fully vaccinated.
Students across Ontario logged in to virtual classrooms as a new school term began Wednesday, triggering renewed frustration for some families who said their children have a tough time with remote learning.
Some parents told reporters that they were “disappointed” with the government’s decision to abruptly shift to online learning.
Meanwhile, Sara Austin, founder and CEO of Children First Canada, a charitable organization that advocates for children, said school closures have a “devastating impact” on kids’ education as well as their physical and mental health.
Teachers’ unions recently are calling on the province to implement a host of measures to ensure a safe return to classrooms, including prioritizing booster shots for staff, making rapid tests available to everyone in schools, improving ventilation, and continuing case count reporting and tracing at schools.
Today, the Ontario government promises that they will give education and child-care workers priority access to vaccination appointments following criticism that it was not doing enough to support a safe return to school later this month.
They will set aside an unspecified number of appointments at a mass vaccination clinic at the International Centre in Mississauga for all education and child care workers starting tomorrow.
Eligible individuals can book the appointments by calling the provincial vaccine hotline at 1 (833) 943-3900.
The appointments will be available between 4:30 p.m. and 8 p.m., seven days a week.
In addition to plans to prioritize education and child-care workers for vaccination, the province says that it will also be distributing N95 respirator masks to all workers in licenced child-care facilities as well as “updating and enhancing child care screening measures to help limit the spread of COVID-19.”
Resources:
https://www.cp24.com/news/nearly-2-300-now-hospitalized-with-covid-19-in-ontario-20-more-deaths-reported-today-1.5729913
https://www.cp24.com/news/schools-shift-to-virtual-learning-in-ontario-amid-surge-in-covid-19-cases-1.5728643
https://www.cp24.com/news/ontario-will-set-aside-vaccination-appointments-for-education-and-child-care-workers-1.5730079
Ontario to give child-care and education workers priority access to vaccination appointments