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

Fast Facts:

  • Ottawa surpasses 50 per cent coverage of one-dose of COVID-19 vaccine
  • Ottawa residents 30 and older will be eligible this week to book an appointment to receive the COVID-19 vaccine
  • The special emergency measures end in Gatineau today, allowing non-essential businesses to reopen for the first time since April 1
  • Ottawa surpasses 26,000 total COVID-19 cases

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

  • New COVID-19 cases: 91 cases on Sunday
  • Total COVID-19 cases: 26,034
  • COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (previous seven days): 69.4
  • Positivity rate in Ottawa: 6.5 per cent (May 7 to May 13)
  • Reproduction Number: 0.96 (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 require testing 72 hours before a scheduled (non-urgent or emergent) surgery (as recommended by your health care provider);
  • You are a patient and/or their 1 accompanying escort tra­velling out of country for medical treatment;
  • You are an international student that has passed their 14-day quarantine period;
  • 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.

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 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
  • COVID-19 Drive-Thru Assessment Centre at 300 Coventry Road: Open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
  • The Moodie Care and Testing Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Open Saturday and Sunday, 8 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. (testing only)
  • The Heron Care and Testing Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
  • The Ray Friel Care and Testing Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.  Saturday 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. (testing only)
  • Southwest Ottawa COVID-19 Assessment Centre at Richmond Memorial Community Centre: Open Sunday, Monday and Thursday from 8 a.m. to 12 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

Vaccine eligibility screening tool:

To check and see if you are eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine in Ottawa, click here. 

COVID-19 screening tool:

The COVID-19 screening tool for students heading back to in-person classes can be found here.

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 surpasses 50 per cent coverage of one-dose of COVID-19 vaccine

The city of Ottawa surpassed a significant milestone this weekend in the COVID-19 vaccination campaign.

The city announced 50 per cent of the population aged 18 and older have received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Ottawa Public Health says as of 11 p.m. Saturday, 431,676 Ottawa residents had received at least one dose.

Mayor Jim Watson is optimistic Ottawa will reach the 75 per cent mark of residents vaccinated "very shortly."

"We can't let up. We have to remind people we're still in a pandemic, and we have to push even harder to get to that next 75 per cent threshold, which will give us those freedoms we've been yearning for for the last year and a half," said Watson.

These groups are eligible to book a COVID-19 vaccine appointment in Ottawa the week of May 17

Ottawa residents in their 30s are next in line to receive the COVID-19 vaccine this week.

The Ontario government says COVID-19 vaccine eligibility expands the week of May 17 to include:

  • Residents 30 and older

The specific day that Ottawa residents 30 and older can book a COVID-19 vaccine appointment has not been announced. You can book an appointment through the province's online booking portal or by calling the Provincial Vaccine Booking Line number at 1-833-943-3900.

Each week in May, the province is expanding the vaccine booking eligibility as more doses are scheduled to arrive in Ontario.

The week of May 24, residents 18 and older will be eligible to book a COVID-19 vaccine. Ontarians 12 to 17 will be eligible to book a COVID-19 vaccine appointment the week of May 31.

COVID-19 vaccine clinic in Ottawa

COVID-19 LOCKDOWN ENDS IN GATINEAU

COVID-19 restrictions in Gatineau and across the Outaouais will ease today, as COVID-19 case levels continue to decline.

The Quebec government is lifting the special emergency measures in effect for the region, and moving the area back to the red zone.

Secondary schools will reopen for in-person learning today, one week after elementary school students in Gatineau and the Outaouais returned to class.

Here is a look at the other changes in Gatineau and the Outaouais as the region moves to the red zone:

  • Curfew 9:30 p.m. to 5 a.m.
  • Private indoor and outdoor gatherings are prohibited
  • Restaurants and bars only allowed to open for takeout and delivery
  • Non-essential businesses, stores and boutiques are open
  • Museums, zoos, aquariums are open with measures in place
  • Gyms remain closed
  • Cinemas are open with measures in place

What lockdown looks like in Gatineau

Ottawa surpasses 26,000 COVID-19 cases

Ottawa Public Health reported 91 new cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa on Sunday, pushing the total number of confirmed cases beyond 26,000.

No new deaths were reported.

Since the first case of COVID-19 on March 11, 2021, there have been 26,034 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa, including 535 deaths.