Toronto, Peel to remain in lockdown as more Ontario regions move to stricter COVID-19 rules

Elisabetta Bianchini
·2 min read
Toronto, Peel to remain in lockdown as more Ontario regions move to stricter COVID-19 rules

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As COVID-19 cases in Ontario continue to increase by more than 2,000 newly reported cases a day, the provincial government is moving more regions into stricter level of restrictions, with Hamilton entering lockdown.

The changes to regional public health restrictions are as follow, effective Monday, Dec. 21:

  • Grey-Lockdown

    • City of Hamilton Public Health Services

  • Red-Control

    • Brant County Health Unit

    • Niagara Region Public Health

  • Orange-Restrict

    • Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington Public Health

  • Yellow-Protect

    • Timiskaming Health Unit

  • Green-Prevent

    • Public Health Sudbury & Districts (moving from the Yellow-Protect level)

Toronto and Peel region will remain under lockdown restrictions, with the situation to be reassessed on Jan. 4.

“As the number of new cases in Ontario continue to rise, it is evident additional measures are needed in certain regions to stop the spread of the virus,” a statement from Dr. David Williams, Ontario’s chief medical officer of health reads. “The trends in key public health indicators in Peel and Toronto remain concerning and we have made the decision to keep them in the Grey-Lockdown level to ensure the continued safety of communities in the regions.”

Peel’s case rate has increased by 8.6 per cent to 199.1 cases per 100,000 people. Toronto saw an increase from 37.5 per cent to 127.5 cases per 100,000 people.

Hospitalizations in Peel have risen by 54 per cent and hospitalizations in Toronto have increased by 40.9 per cent. The positivity rate is currently 8.5 per cent in Peel and 5.8 per cent in Toronto.

“With public health indicators continuing to worsen in Toronto and Peel, we are making the difficult but necessary decision to extend public health measures to stop the spread of COVID-19, protect our hospital capacity and safeguard the key services we rely on,” a statement from Christine Elliott, Ontario’s Deputy Premier and Minister of Health reads. “Now more than ever we are urging everyone to continue following public health measures and advice, especially over the holiday season.”

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