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

Fast Facts:

  • Anyone in Ottawa 18 and older will be eligible to book an appointment for a COVID-19 vaccine as of 8 a.m. today.
  • Ottawa's key COVID-19 metrics continue to decline.
  • Malls were packed with shoppers Monday as the Quebec government lifted lockdown restrictions in Gatineau.
  • Ontario's health minister is suggesting outdoor recreational amenities could reopen before the lifting of the stay-at-home order on June 2.

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

  • New COVID-19 cases: 77 cases on Monday
  • Total COVID-19 cases: 26,111
  • COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (previous seven days): 65.0
  • Positivity rate in Ottawa: 5.3 per cent (May 10 to May 16)
  • Reproduction Number: 0.97 (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

Ontario expands vaccine eligibility to anyone 18 and older one week ahead of schedule

All adults in Ottawa will be eligible to book COVID-19 vaccines at mass immunization clinics this week, ahead of the province's original schedule.

Starting at 8 a.m. today, everyone over 18 will be eligible to book a vaccination appointment through the provincial booking system and call centre.

The province's original schedule had people aged 30 and older booking appointments this week, and those 18 and older the week of May 24. However, with 2.2 million doses arriving in the province this week, they're opening it up to all adults.

People who are 17 years old and turning 18 this year will also be eligible to book appointments, but only for the Pfizer vaccine. That vaccine is the only shot approved by Health Canada for kids 12 and over.

COVID-19 vaccine clinic in Ottawa

Key COVID-19 metrics in Ottawa showing more signs of improvement

Ottawa Public Health is reporting continued improvement in the COVID-19 situation in Ottawa.

The number of people in Ottawa hospitals with COVID-19 decreased in Monday's report, as did the number of known active cases, the weekly per capita incidence rate and the testing positivity rate.

There were 77 newly reported infections and one newly reported death on Monday. OPH also reported 103 newly resolved cases. 

The COVID-19 wastewater monitoring project is also showing a decline in the concentration of the virus in the city's wastewater.

 

Gatineau shoppers flood malls as Quebec lifts lockdown restrictions on non-essential businesses

The parking lot at Les Promenades Gatineau filled up quickly Monday morning, as shoppers arrived to buy non-essential items inside a store for the first time since April.

One shopper described the crowds as "worse than Christmas."

The maximum number of customers allowed in a store depends on the size. Quebec says the capacity will be determined by dividing the floor area available to customers by 20.

The Quebec government lifted the special emergency measures for Gatineau, Pontiac and the MRC-des-Collines one week after the restrictions were lifted in Papineau and the Vallee de la Gatineau.

Quebec imposed the lockdown measures on Gatineau back on April 1, which included the closure of schools and non-essential businesses. The special emergency measures were extended to the entire Outaouais region on April 14.

 Les Promenades parking lot

Ontario could reopen your golf course before June 2

Health Minister Christine Elliott says that her government will reopen recreational amenities “on or before June 2” when the current stay-at-home order is set to expire.

The Ford government decided to close all recreational amenities back on April 16 amid a devastating third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The decision upset a number of epidemiologists and public experts who have consistently argued that the risk of contracting COVID-19 outdoors is extremely low.

Speaking during Question Period at Queen’s Park on Monday, Elliott said that her government still believes it would be “irresponsible” to reopening recreational amenities today with case counts still high but she also gave the clearest indication to date that some recreational amenities will soon reopen, perhaps even prior to the expiry of the current stay-at-home order.

Premier Doug Ford has defended the closure of recreational amenities as a way to reduce mobility and discourage people from leaving their homes for non-essential purposes.

Golf