Fewer Ontarians Are Heeding Covid-19 Lockdown This Time Around

(Bloomberg) -- Restrictions imposed to curb a second wave of Covid-19 in Ontario have not had “nearly as much impact” on keeping people home as the March lockdown did, according to the latest provincial data.

Among the key findings and projections:

• The number of people dying from the virus continues to rise and may exceed 25 per day in Ontario within a month
• The number of people requiring long-term care also continues to rise
• Rates of infection are increasing across demographic groups, but people living in multi-generational housing and essential workers outside of health care are suffering more
• Health care in the province will continue to be strained as more than 200 ICU beds are occupied by Covid-19 patients
• That said, while the absolute number of cases continues to grow, the percentage of positive tests in Ontario appears to be flattening

Ontario expects to receive “a very small number” of Covid-19 vaccine doses in coming days and will prioritize health care workers in long-term care homes and other high-risk settings, Premier Doug Ford said on Thursday. The province will administer the first doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to those workers on Dec. 15 in Toronto and Ottawa.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.