Ontario is seeing what health officials call a “real rise in cases” of COVID-19, and it doesn’t look like it’s getting better anytime soon.
That according to the latest modelling from the Science Advisory table which says testing has not increased, but positivity is rising.
Officials say the spread of the Omicron variant will likely drive COVID-19 cases even higher than current projections, reaching as high as 3,000 daily cases by Mid-January.
Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Keiran Moore says the numbers modelling show are “disconcerting”.
“Our modelling is predicting a rise in cases which I think we all knew would occur as we head indoors, into closed spaces,” he says. “I am concerned about the coming months and its potential impact on our Healthcare System and hence, our fate is in our hands,”
The table says even though vaccine effectiveness in Ontario remains very high, experience in other countries suggests all Ontarians will need to boost immunity with third doses.
In light of the new modelling, the province announced it is delaying lifting capacity limits in nightclubs, wedding receptions, and strip clubs.
Dr.Moore says we can prevent a major impact on our health systems by adhering to all the basics that we’ve been doing for the last 20 months of this pandemic.
