Restrictions lifted at long-term care facilities
Residents of long-term care homes can have more visitors but be aware that different facilities have different requirements.
The province states residents can now designate a number of people as caregivers allowing for outdoor visits for up to ten people.
Indoors, they will be allowed to receive up to four people, two caregivers and two visitors.
However, facilities still have it within their scope to limit numbers due to staff limitations or space.
And some continue to require rapid testing for indoor visits, especially if a visitor has had only one vaccination.
Provincial officials say virtually all those living in long-term care homes have been fully immunized against COVID-19 with 92 per cent of staff having received at least one shot, 84 per cent having both.
Check with your local facility on their requirements for visitors.
Moving to stage three – not likely
The science director of the province’s COVID-19 scientific advisory panel says Ontario is “absolutely not” ready to move into Stage Three of the reopening plan on July 20th.
Dooctor Peter Juni tells CTV that the vaccination targets for Stage Three, which we’ve already surpassed, were based on the Alpha variant of the virus.
But he says the Delta variant now dominates new caseloads in our province…and it’s much more contagious and deadly.
Juni says we need to see 75 per cent of Ontarians 12 and older completely vaccinated before we move ahead.
Several countries have begun re-imposing restrictions as the number of cases involving the Delta variant increase sharply.