York Region plans for new public health measures in wake of rising COVID-19 cases in kids

York Region is preparing to take additional targeted efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19 as numbers continue to rise, including among children.

As cases rise across the province and York Region, medical officer of health Dr. Karim Kurji said more of the cases locally are among children under 12, which the region wants to combat.

Previously about 12 per cent of local cases were typically among children, but Kurji said that has gone up to 30 per cent in recent days.

With children under 12 still unable to be vaccinated, and cases rising, Kurji said measures could include active screening in child-care settings, masking for junior and senior kindergarten students, reducing capacity for large events, and having banquet halls and restaurants keep larger gatherings to fully vaccinated individuals only. 

“These are examples of targeted interventions that we believe will assist in keeping us safe,” Kurji said. 

Kurji said none of these measures are finalized, though neighbouring health units are considering similar initiatives, especially masking in kindergarten. The measures would be at the regional health unit level, and could be in the form of recommendations for organizations, or an order under the Health Protection and Promotion Act or letter of instruction under the Reopening Ontario Act. 

While Ontario has opted to pause lifting of public health restrictions, it has not yet made any indication it could increase public health measures. Kurji said he welcomed the province’s decision and had recommended it. He said their modelling indicating further reopening would lead to 80 more cases per day in October and two more hospitalizations per day by then.

“We have shared these concerns with the chief medical officer of health and asked them to pause the reopening, at least for York Region, to avoid these increases,” Kurji said. “I am very happy about the fact that reopening has been paused for now.”

“The delta variant is highly transmissible and the experience of other jurisdictions shows we must remain vigilant as we head into the fall,” Newmarket-Aurora MPP and Minister of Health Christine Elliott said this week. 

Schools will require masking in indoor settings, except when eating, for students in grades 1 to 12. But masking for kindergarten students is only being encouraged by the province, not required.

The province has not yet issued any new vaccine mandates, though is requiring policies in health care and educational settings for staff to disclose vaccination status and be subject to regular testing if unvaccinated.

Kurji said he is supportive of the direction, and the inconvenience could encourage more people to get vaccines. He said public health is also looking at criteria on rapid testing and is considering increasing it from once a week to two or three times per week.

“With these factors, I am hoping that more and more will switch over to getting vaccinated,” Kurji said.

Meanwhile, Ontario has also announced it would begin offering third COVID-19 shots to vulnerable populations like cancer patients and long-term care homes as early as this week. 

Most mass immunization clinics are closing in York this month, but Kurji said the region is planning to restart clinics in the future if the province indicates a need for mass booster shots. 

Kurji said the local public health unit is migrating the mass immunization sites to two central hubs, including one in Newmarket, supported by mobile and school-based clinics. But they can activate more mass immunization sites in the future, depending on the provincial direction for booster shots. 

“We are quite ready,” Kurji said, “with respect to making plans to have scaleable options.”