LOCALLY: Another case in Sudbury
The City of Greater Sudbury has its 39th case of COVID-19.
Public Health Sudbury says a man in his 20s has contracted the disease from an unknown source.
He is self-isolating at home.
Public Health Algoma still stands at ten cases in all.
There have been no cases of the coronavirus along the North Shore corridor and the two reported on Manitoulin Island in early March have since recovered in self-isolation at their home.
PROVINCIALLY: Across Ontario, our province is reporting 494 new cases bringing the total number so far to 84-hundred and 47.
A record 51 deaths were reported as well.
So far, 385 Ontarians have died.
About half of the new cases yesterday were found in long-term care homes.
Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer says 98 outbreaks have been reported in such facilities across the province.
But Doctor David Williams adds that number is down from earlier this week.
Premier Doug Ford is promising to concentrate more resources on the battle in long-term care residences.
The number of people who have recovered from the virus has jumped to 39-hundred, just over 46 percent of the cases diagnosed so far.
NATIONALLY: Canada’s chief public health officer says there is cause for cautious optimism that the spread of the coronavirus is slowing.
Doctor Theresa Tam says the number of cases in Canada is now doubling about every ten days compared to every three days late last month.
That, she says, shows the rate of infection is dropping.
But Tam also warns that it’s far too soon to ease the limits on movement and business.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is echoing that call.
Trudeau says we’re still in the first wave of the COVID-19 outbreak, and loosening restrictions now would mean giving up the progress we’ve made to date.
CERB EXPANSION: The federal government is again expanding the number of people who are eligible for the Canada Emergency Response benefit of up to two-thousand dollars per month.
The program will now cover seasonal workers, those who have recently exhausted Employment Insurance benefits, and those who make less than a thousand dollars a month due to reduced working hours.
Prime Minister Trudeau also announced a pay raise for essential workers who make less than 25-hundred dollars a month.
Details of the wage boost will be worked out with the provinces.
CORONAVIRUS AND THE WHO
The World Health Organization says it regrets the decision by U-S President Donald Trump to halt contributions to the world agency, and it will have to reassess its programs.
Trump is accusing the organization of promoting Chinese “disinformation” about the spread of the coronavirus, leading to an outbreak that is far worse than it should have been.
Spain and Italy, which have almost 40-thousand COVID-19 deaths, have begun to allow some non-essential businesses to reopen.
Germany plans a similar move next week.
The W-H-O says the world stands at a “pivotal juncture” right now……and countries that are easing restrictions should wait at least two weeks to evaluate the impact before loosening any more restraints.
