York Region Public Health is asking residents to remain vigilant as COVID-19 restrictions begin to lift.
Associate medical officer of health Dr. Richard Gould said Feb. 14 that while things are improving slowly, the burden on hospitals is still great and close to the peak of the third wave.
With the province speeding up reopening practices, Gould said care is still needed.
“I want to remind everyone, while that is great news for our mental health and economy, we must remain cautious,” Gould said. “Omicron is highly transmissible, and we must continue to follow public health guidelines.”
The province announced today that more restrictions would lift Feb. 17. All capacity limits and vaccine mandates are to lift March 1.
“Thanks to the province’s high vaccination rates and the continued sacrifices of Ontarians, we are now in a position where we can move forward in our plan earlier than anticipated,” Minister of Health and Newmarket-Aurora MPP Christine Elliott said in a news release. “With hospitalizations and ICU admissions continuing to decline, we are committed to maintaining a gradual and cautious approach to protect our hospital capacity.”
In York Region, there are 83 COVID-19-related hospitalizations, with 26 in ICU as of Feb. 11. That is down from a peak of 244 total hospitalizations, 33 in ICU Jan. 19.
Gould said the situation is improving with hospitals resuming non-emergency procedures last week. But he said the public needs to be careful to keep those procedures going.
“We need to ensure our hospitals have the capacity to resume and maintain this care," Gould said. “Decreasing COVID-19 hospital and ICU admissions is important so that we can give better access for everyone in health-care systems."
Gould encouraged citizens to get booster doses. He said that although Ontario studies now show a 95 per cent effectiveness of booster doses to preventing hospitalization from COVID, more local residents need to get it. Only 45.8 per cent of York Region residents have thus far, including younger age groups.
“Booster doses are very important for protecting yourself and protecting your hospital from being overburdened,” Gould said. “If you haven't received your booster dose, please do so right away.”
You can book a vaccine through york.ca/covid19vaccine, or the provincial booking system. All York Region clinics now offer walk-ins as well. The province also announced booster eligibility would expand to youth aged 12 to 17 starting Feb. 18.
“Working together, we can get through this,” Gould said.
