Ontario's long-term care minister says the province is monitoring the situation as 10 per cent of long-term care homes report COVID-19 outbreaks, while stressing that "the time has come to move on" from strict public health measures.
Paul Calandra said Friday that the government expected cases to increase when it lifted most public health measures last month, but he noted that rules like mandatory masking still remain in long-term care to protest the most vulnerable.
"It's not completely behind us. We're going to be battling this for some time to come," he said at a funding announcement in Toronto.
"But for the vast majority of the people in this province, the time has come to move on and to learn to live with COVID, and that includes respecting people in their long-term care homes and allowing them to once again be part of the community."
Long-term care residents, who have been subject to the strictest lockdown and isolation measures in the province throughout the pandemic, saw restrictions on visits and other social activities loosen last month.
Around the same time, the province removed virtually all general public health measures like mandatory masking in most public spaces, crowd capacity limits and proof-of-vaccination rules.
Also lifted was a mandatory vaccination policy for workers in the long-term care sector, which has accounted for approximately 35 per cent of Ontario's virus-related deaths.
The majority of deaths in the sector occurred before people were vaccinated, but they have continued in smaller numbers since then. Most recently, the Omicron wave early this year saw more long-term care workers infected than at any point in the pandemic and a rise in outbreaks, deaths and infections among residents.
After a brief lull, COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are now ticking upwards again in Ontario, including in long-term care homes. The province's health minister said this week that the government isn't considering bringing back public health measures at the moment.
Calandra said Friday that vaccinations have made long-term care safer, and noted that the "vast majority of homes are not in outbreak" and many with outbreaks are reporting a small number of cases among staff. He promised that the province would keep providing resources to protect residents.
"Obviously, this is our most vulnerable sector, so we're going to make sure that they remain safe," he said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 1, 2022.
Holly McKenzie-Sutter, The Canadian Press
