The Ontario government, in consultation with the Chief Medical Officer of Health, is pausing the lifting of capacity limits in remaining higher-risk settings as outlined in A Plan to Safely Reopen Ontario and Manage COVID-19 for the Long-Term. This is being done out of an abundance of caution as the province monitors public health trends.
The phased and cautious approach to Ontario’s safe reopening includes ongoing monitoring and assessment of key public health and health care indicators. While Ontario’s hospital and intensive care capacity remains stable and the province continues to report one of the lowest rates of active cases in the country, certain public health trends, including the effective reproduction number and percent positivity have increased slightly over the past week.
An increase in cases was always expected as more people move indoors due to the colder weather and as the province eased measures. However, out of an abundance of caution, existing capacity limits and physical distancing requirements for higher-risk settings where proof of vaccination is required will remain in place to ensure the province has the required time to better understand any potential impact on hospitalizations and ICU admissions. These higher-risk settings include:
- food or drink establishments with dance facilities such as night clubs and wedding receptions in meeting/event spaces where there is dancing;
- strip clubs; and
- sex clubs and bathhouses.
The government and the Chief Medical Officer of Health will continue to monitor the data for the next 28 days to determine when it is safe to lift capacity limits in these settings.
