TORONTO — Ontario Premier Doug Ford is expected to make an announcement Wednesday on COVID-19 booster doses, as the province's top doctor urges new provincial measures to deal with the Omicron variant.
Dr. Kieran Moore told a news conference Tuesday that the current regional approach to public health restrictions was designed with the Delta variant in mind, and Omicron — which appears to be highly transmissible and is infecting vaccinated people — poses new risks.
"Omicron is becoming a game-changer for all of us," he said. "I'd want to have a consistent approach across Ontario."
He said an announcement will come later this week, with health officials reviewing restrictions such as maximum group sizes for gatherings and best practices in schools.
Ford's cabinet is set to meet Wednesday, and a government source said he will also be making an announcement focused on boosters. It comes two days after people aged 50 to 69 — about 3.4 million Ontario residents — became eligible to book their third shots. Moore, as well as the head of the Ontario Hospital Association, said the province has been working with health partners to ramp up vaccination capacity.
Aside from new long-term care policies around vaccinations, group activities and worker testing, the province did not announce other specific measures targeted at Omicron on Tuesday.
Moore advised people to reduce their social contacts, follow public health precautions and make choices based on personal risk assessments.
"You can assume that Omicron is becoming the dominant strain in the next coming days or weeks and take appropriate action based on your personal circumstance, your family circumstance and the community," he said. "I do trust Ontarians to make the right decisions."
While the full extent of Omicron's hold on Ontario isn't known yet, but Moore said all new cases should be treated as if they are the variant going forward. That means all high-risk contacts of infected people must isolate even if they are vaccinated.
Moore said the province is planning ways to bring health-care workers and others in essential frontline jobs back to work if they are forced into isolation after being exposed. That might involve deploying rapid tests every day for high-risk contacts to keep the workforce in place, he said.
"We are very concerned about a shortage in health human resources in the setting of Omicron, given its potential for rapid spread," he said. "We have a strategy to bring workers back."
As for what the variant means for schools, Moore said he hopes to keep schools open "as long as we can," with protocols being reviewed to make schools safer. He said he still considers schools safe.
Ontario public health units continued to issue advice and adjust local pandemic approaches Tuesday in the face of the new variant.
In Sudbury, Ont., the public health unit said Tuesday it was redeploying "any of its remaining staff resources" this week to vaccination work, citing fears that the Omicron variant could put pressure on local health-care capacity already strained by Delta cases. Health officials warned residents that other public health programs might be reduced as a result of the booster drive.
"This collective push means everyone is stepping up to get as many booster doses into arms over the shortest time possible," said Dr. Penny Sutcliffe, medical officer of health for the northern city. "We realize what is at stake and are rallying to limit the severity of illness and protect capacity within our already vulnerable health care system."
In northwestern Ontario, the top public health doctor covering Kenora, Ont., and the surrounding area strongly recommended residents avoid travel outside the region over the holidays in light of the Omicron threat.
“I ask that anyone who was planning to travel rethinks their plans," said Dr. Kit Young Hoon. "The Omicron variant is extremely transmissible and now is an opportunity to slow down the introduction of this variant into our region."
Elsewhere in the province, areas with documented Omicron spread reported growing strain on local public health capacity.
In Ottawa, residents were advised of a contact tracing backlog for COVID-19 cases and said people with positive tests should alert their close contacts themselves.
In Kingston, Ont., where community spread of the variant has also been confirmed, the health unit said Monday it would soon start offering take-home tests at primary care offices. Officials said it was part of a strategy to relieve assessment centres that were struggling to keep up with demand for virus tests.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 14, 2021.
Holly McKenzie-Sutter, The Canadian Press
