Ministry of Health coronavirus situation report #126

Situation:    

• 323 new cases were reported in Ontario today, bringing the cumulative case count to 27,533 (this includes 21,353 resolved cases and 2,247 deaths).
• In Ontario, a total of 701,327 tests have been completed, with tests performed at Public Health Ontario Laboratories and non-Public Health Laboratories. There are currently 12,760 tests under investigation.
• 801 patients are currently hospitalized with COVID-19; 121 are in ICU; and 84 are in ICU on a ventilator.

 Actions Taken:

• The Ontario government made amendments to the Retirement Homes Act, 2010 regulation, enabling the Retirement Homes Regulatory Authority (RHRA) to better support seniors living in retirement homes during the COVID-19 outbreak.
  • The regulation change increases the emergency payment the RHRA can pay to eligible retirement home residents from $2,000 to $3,500. In the event of an emergency, such as an outbreak, this funding can be used to support residents to cover costs for transportation, alternative accommodation or temporary care.
  • The regulation change also requires retirement homes to report infectious disease outbreaks to the RHRA during COVID-19 and beyond.     
• In addition, the government has issued an emergency order eliminating barriers to eligible frontline workers receiving pandemic pay. It will allow employers with unionized workforces to provide pandemic pay to eligible employees without the need to negotiate separate terms or conditions with their bargaining agents.
• Assessment centre locations can now be found on the ministry website.