Ontario sets up checkpoints and closes construction to the battle of viruses

Photographer: Galit Rodan / Bloomberg

In an attempt by Ave Maria to control a third wave of Covid-19, Ontario unveiled its even stricter measures to restrict the movement of people, establishing checkpoints with neighboring Quebec and Manitoba for the first time in the pandemic.

The government of Prime Minister Doug Ford has said it will extend an emergency order at home to six weeks from four. The province is forcing non-essential construction sites to close and close recreational facilities, including golf courses, playgrounds and football fields. Essential stores such as supermarkets and pharmacies will have to operate at 25% of normal capacity.

“My friends, we are losing the battle between variants and vaccines,” Ford said at a news conference Friday afternoon. “The reality is that there are few options left.” Schools, restaurants, personalized care services and many retailers were already closed.

What is really needed are more vaccines. If the province could triple its daily inoculation rate to about 300,000 a day, it would significantly improve the chances of controlling the virus, health officials said Friday, according to Ford. “Until we have more vaccines, we need stricter measures.”

The province is running out of new steps and is begging residents to take restrictions seriously.

Ontario reported 4,812 new cases in 24 hours, more than half of Canada’s total and a record for the region hosting nearly 40% of its residents. This week, Canada passed the United States for the first time in the number of new cases of Covid-19 per capita.

“The biggest problem we face now may be that we are too tired to notice,” Adalsteinn Brown, a doctor who is co-chair of Ontario’s Covid-19 Science Advisory Board, said in a briefing. previous Friday. Daily cases will exceed 15,000 daily in June with no major efforts to curb the spread, the advisory group said.

Ontario needs to be “laser-focused” in vaccinating people in the hardest-hit areas and making sure essential jobs are safe, Brown said. Even with increased surveillance, the province’s intensive care units will have more than 1,000 patients with viruses in the coming weeks, according to current cases, he said.

About 22% of Canadians have received at least one dose of Covid-19 vaccine, compared with 38% in the US and 49% in the UK, according to the Bloomberg vaccine tracker. Ensuring sufficient supply has been a problem in operation. This week, some Toronto vaccination clinics have had to close because they have no dose.

Modern Cuts

Friday, Moderna Inc. informed the Tsar of Justin Trudeau’s vaccine that Canada will receive barely half of the Covid-19 shots expected to arrive in late April, due to a slower-than-expected start of the expected production increases. Deliveries to The United Kingdom and other countries also declined.

Procurement Minister Anita Anand said this Friday’s shipments contain 650,000 doses instead of the planned 1.2 million. The manufacturer also warned that up to 2 million of the 12.3 million shots scheduled for delivery in late June will be provided by the end of September.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, however, also announced a deal to buy 8 million more Pfizer Inc.—Dose of BioNTech SE. Four million are expected to arrive in May, with 2 million each in June and July.

“State of crisis”

The Canadian Medical Association called for urgent action to address “the state of crisis that is developing in several provinces.” It should be noted that the association must move health resources, including vaccines, across provincial and territorial borders to areas where the system is overflowing.