COVID-19 in Ottawa: Fast Facts for Aug. 30, 2021

A staff member checks a student's temperature before entering the school. (Photo by Yan Krukov from Pexels)

OTTAWA -

Good morning. Here is the latest news on COVID-19 and its impact on Ottawa.

Fast Facts:

• Ottawa businesses wait for details on potential COVID-19 vaccination passport
• Active COVID-19 cases in Ottawa dip below 200 on Sunday
• First day of classes for the Western Quebec School Board

COVID-19 by the numbers in Ottawa (Ottawa Public Health data):

• New COVID-19 cases: 30 new cases on Sunday
• Total COVID-19 cases: 28,294
• COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (previous seven days): 16.9
• Positivity rate in Ottawa: 1.6 per cent (seven day average)
• Reproduction Number: 1.01 (seven day average)

Testing:

Who should get a test?

Ottawa Public Health says you can get a COVID-19 test at an assessment centre, care clinic, or community testing site if any of the following apply to you:

• You are showing COVID-19 symptoms;
• You have been exposed to a confirmed case of the virus, as informed by Ottawa Public Health or exposure notification through the COVID Alert app;
• You are a resident or work in a setting that has a COVID-19 outbreak, as identified and informed by Ottawa Public Health;
• You are a resident, a worker or a visitor to long-term care, retirement homes, homeless shelters or other congregate settings (for example: group homes, community supported living, disability-specific communities or congregate settings, short-term rehab, hospices and other shelters);
• You are a person who identifies as First Nations, Inuit or Métis;
• You are a person travelling to work in a remote First Nations, Inuit or Métis community;
• You received a preliminary positive result through rapid testing;
• You are a patient and/or their 1 accompanying escort tra­velling out of country for medical treatment;
• You are a farm worker;
• You are an educator who cannot access pharmacy-testing; or
• You are in a targeted testing group as outlined in guidance from the Chief Medical Officer of Health.

Long-term care staff, caregivers, volunteers and visitors who are fully immunized against COVID-19 are not required to present a negative COVID-19 test before entering or visiting a long-term care home.

Where to get tested for COVID-19 in Ottawa:

There are several sites for COVID-19 testing in Ottawa. To book an appointment, visit https://www.ottawapublichealth.ca/en/shared-content/assessment-centres.aspx

• The Brewer Ottawa Hospital/CHEO Assessment Centre: Open Monday to Friday 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
• COVID-19 Drive-Thru Assessment Centre at 300 Coventry Road: Open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• The Moodie Care and Testing Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. 
• The Ray Friel Care and Testing Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• North Grenville COVID-19 Assessment Centre (Kemptville) – 15 Campus Drive: Open Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Centretown Community Health Centre: Open Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Sandy Hill Community Health Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 3 pm.
• Somerset West Community Health Centre: Open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Wednesday, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday and 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Friday

COVID-19 screening tool:

The COVID-19 screening tool for summer camp children and staff. All campers and staff must complete the COVID-19 School and Childcare screening tool daily.

Symptoms:

Classic Symptoms: fever, new or worsening cough, shortness of breath

Other symptoms: sore throat, difficulty swallowing, new loss of taste or smell, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, pneumonia, new or unexplained runny nose or nasal congestion

Less common symptoms: unexplained fatigue, muscle aches, headache, delirium, chills, red/inflamed eyes, croup

Ottawa businesses wait for details on potential COVID-19 vaccination passport

An Ottawa small business advocate believes most businesses would support the introduction of a COVID-19 vaccine passport to help avoid another lockdown, but there are concerns about potential costs associated with the plan and enforcing the rules.

A senior government source tells CTV News Toronto the Ontario government will unveil a COVID-19 vaccine passport to access non-essential businesses and services this week. The source said the certificate will be required in places like restaurants and movie theatres.

In an interview on CTV News at Six, Michael Wood of Ottawa Special Events said small businesses are waiting to hear the details of a potential proof of vaccination system in Ontario.

"As we've seen over the last couple of days, we have case counts rising. So at this point, I think whatever it's going to take to make sure that the restrictions are not reintroduced or lockdowns," said Wood on Sunday evening.

"I think most businesses are happy with the idea of support coming, however, there's a lot of concern as to what that support is actually going to look like."

If Ontario introduces a COVID-19 vaccine passport, Wood has a message for residents.

"People are going to have to be aware that if this actually comes through it's not the business, this is a government regulation that the business has to follow."

QR code for Quebec vaccine passport. (Source: Ministry of Health and Social Services)

Active COVID-19 cases in Ottawa dip below 200 Sunday

Ottawa Public Health reported 30 new cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa on Sunday, while the number of active cases dipped below 200.

Since the first case of COVID-19 in March 2020, there have been 28,294 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa, including 593 deaths.

Thirty-two more cases of COVID-19 were considered resolved on Sunday, bringing the active COVID-19 case count to 199.

 

COVID-19 Cases in Ottawa
Infogram

 

First day of school

It's the first day of school for some students with the Western Quebec School Board.

All schools are open for in-person learning.

The board says students in the Outaouais must wear masks on buses and at all times while inside their respective school.  Students in Region 8 (G. Théberge, Noranda, Golden Valley, WQ Continuing Education Centre- Val D’or, Anishnabe Adult Education Centre) must wear masks while on buses, and while in common areas inside their respective school or centre.

Students in Kindergarten are not required to wear masks.

The first day of classes for both the Conseil des écoles catholiques du Centre-Est and the Conseil des ecoles publiques de l'Est de l'Ontario is Tuesday.