Provincial mask orders for public transportation and healthcare facilities will expire this weekend – though hospitals say they will continue to require masks. Coverage will still be required in long-term care homes and nursing homes and is still recommended in higher-risk concentration areas, such as shelters and group homes. In an interview Friday, the Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Kieran Moore, said preparations for an autumn strategy for COVID-19 are underway, including vaccinations, and officials are going through various scenarios, such as an aggressive flu season and new variants of COVID-19. LISTEN Ontario Should Have Extended High-Risk Mask Adjustment Commands: Chief Science Panel Metro Morning8: 42 As mask orders in most high-risk settings expire this weekend, Dr. Fahad Razak wants to see universal coverage policy in Ontario hospitals Dr. Fahad Razak is the Scientific Director for the COVID-19 Scientific Advisory Board in Ontario and is a physician at St. Louis Hospital. Michael. Moore says there will be another booster available for those most at risk, with the possibility of later opening it to the general public. He says he expects a new generation of vaccine to be available in the fall targeting both the original COVID strain and a more up-to-date one, such as Omicron. The Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Kieran Moore, said preparations for an autumn strategy for COVID-19 have begun well, including vaccinations, and officials are going through various scenarios, such as an offensive flu season and new variants of COVID-19. (Nathan Denette / The Canadian Press) Moore says that if another wave of COVID-19 threatens the health system and its ability to cope with unfulfilled surgery, it could restore mask orders, but says he does not believe other public health measures will be needed for the virus again. Although the province is lifting hospital coverage policies, the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA) says it does not know of any hospitals in the province that will end coverage requirements on Saturday. OHA President Anthony Dale said the agency, which represents the county’s public hospitals, had proposed an extension of the provincial ordinance requiring a mask to hospital environments.
10 more deaths were reported
Ontario, meanwhile, reports 536 COVID-19 hospitalizations and 10 more deaths Friday. Reported hospitalizations on Friday fell slightly from 549 on Thursday and from 669 on the same day last week. According to the Ministry of Health, 42% of patients were admitted specifically for the virus, while the rest were admitted for other reasons and then tested positive. Of the patients, 110 needed intensive treatment, up from 118 on Thursday, but up from 117 this week last week. Fifty-two patients need ventilator assistance to breathe. About 66 percent of people in intensive care units were admitted because of the virus, while the rest were admitted for other reasons and then tested positive. The province, meanwhile, reported at least 835 new daily cases of COVID-19 on Friday, with 9,192 tests completed in the last 24 hours. However, due to exam restrictions, officials say the actual number of daily new cases is likely to be much higher than reported. The test-taking rate across the province is 7.3 percent. Sewage monitoring for COVID-19 detection indicates a continuing overall reduction in the level of contamination in most of the province except northern Ontario, according to the COVID-19 Ontario Scientific Advisory Board. The latest data show a decrease in sewage detection from May 31 with estimates that this trend will continue in June. The new deaths reported on Friday raise the death toll from the province’s pandemic to 13,324.