Doug Ford Is Reportedly Considering New COVID-19 Measures For Ontario Today As Cases Rise

Well, it looks like Premier Ford is meeting up with his cabinet this morning to consider what public health measures to enact amid the worsening COVID-19 situation in Ontario.

CTV News Toronto reports that Ford was given many options to consider earlier this week like potentially closing down schools for some time over the winter break and moving Ontario back to Step 3 of its reopening plan. But, the provincial government was reportedly not yet ready to make any big changes to its current public health measures and, instead, wants to look at creating new guidance over the holidays.

In a cabinet meeting reportedly being held at 10 a.m., CityNews reports that Ford is considering tightening the measures with vaccine certificates and could ditch the paper versions for solely relying on QR codes instead.

The province will also reportedly not weed out vaccine certificates in certain settings as originally planned for on January 17, where these requirements could have been lifted for restaurants, bars, sports facilities, casinos, and bingo halls.

As of Thursday, Ontario is clocking nearly 1,300 new COVID-19 cases, which CityNews reports is the highest in over six months.

The Risks of Omicron Variant with Dr. Peter Juni youtu.be

Dr. Peter Juni, the scientific director of Ontario's Science Advisory Table, had told Narcity in a recent interview that proof of vaccination requirements wouldn't be lifted in January.

"You know, you don't have to be a prophet to understand that it's impossible to lift it now, this would be foolhardy if we did so," Dr. Juni said. "What was being said by the CMOH, by Dr. Moore was, they will look at the epidemiological situation at that time, and would see this as the earliest possible time point to lift it and it's very obvious right now where we are that Dr. Moore will not lift any requirements for vaccine certificates, etcetera. Impossible that it happens."

Earlier this week Ontario announced it will be pausing its reopening plan indefinitely, which meant that capacity limits at higher-risk settings like nightclubs, strip clubs, sex clubs, bathhouses, and other food or drink establishments with dance floors wouldn't have their capacity limits lifted.

On Monday, Minister of Health Christine Elliott hinted that the reopening timeline could change given the rising concerns of the new Omicron variant in Ontario.