Downward trend in new cases in Ontario plateaus

Published May 22, 2020 • 1 minute read

Dr. David Williams, Medical Officer of Health of Toronto speaks about the Coronavirus at Queens Park in Toronto on Monday Photo by Stan Behal /Toronto Sun

A downward trend in the number of new COVID-19 cases in Ontario has stalled.

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“We’re pretty well at a plateau,” Ontario Chief Medical Officer Dr. David Williams said Thursday.

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“That is disappointing and we’re trying to get a sense of why isn’t that improving.”

Ontario reported 413 new cases Thursday for a total of 24,187.

Provincial officials reached out to their counterparts at local public health units and learned that some of these cases could flow from expanded testing of long-term care residents, he said.

There was no information immediately available Thursday on how many of the new cases were from the long-term care sector and how came from community spread.

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“We’re still seeing, especially in the Greater Toronto Area, a fair amount of disease activity as noted by our daily numbers,” Williams said.

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A dozen Canadian service members deployed to hard-hit Ontario nursing homes have tested positive for COVID-19.

An investigation by the military will need to be carried out to determine how that occurred, Williams said.

“We haven’t got the full report back from their commanding officers yet in that regard,” he said.

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Health Minister Christine Elliott said it’s too soon to tell if the new cases result for a reopening of many workplaces.

Williams noted all social distancing rules remain in effect, and the province has actually strengthened them by strongly recommending face masks in public places where it’s difficult to maintain a two-metre distance from others.

The Ford government announced Thursday that it will provide $7.2 million to 15 promising COVID-19 research projects underway in Ontario.

“Until we find that vaccine, the fight isn’t over,” Ford said.

aartuso@postmedia.com

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