OTTAWA -- Good morning. Here is the latest news on COVID-19 and its impact on Ottawa.
Fast Facts:
- The City of Ottawa says more COVID-19 vaccine appointments will become available at 8 a.m. today, just as eligibility drops to anyone 12 and older.
- Ottawa reported fewer than 100 new COVID-19 cases for the third day in a row on Saturday.
- The York Street Farmers' Market in the ByWard Market is adjusting its hours because of planned anti-lockdown and anti-mask demonstrations.
- A Kingston man is raising money for food banks across Canada and the U.S. with a simple slogan: "Love is more contagious than COVID-19."
COVID-19 by the numbers in Ottawa (Ottawa Public Health data):
- New COVID-19 cases: 78 cases on Saturday
- Total COVID-19 cases: 26,503
- COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (previous seven days): 57.7
- Positivity rate in Ottawa: 5.5 per cent (May 14 to May 20)
- Reproduction Number: 0.86 (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 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 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)
- 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 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
New COVID-19 vaccine appointments available as eligibility drops to 12 and older
The City of Ottawa says new COVID-19 vaccine appointments will become available this morning, the same time the province opens eligibility to anyone 12 and older.
In a release Saturday afternoon, the city said the additional appointments would be available starting at 8 a.m. today; however, the city did not specify how many appointments would be available, nor did it say when the vaccinations would take place.
The Ontario government announced late Friday afternoon that youth aged 12 and older across Ontario would be eligible to book a COVID-19 vaccine appointment through the provincial booking system and call centre as of Sunday morning. Only the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is approved for children 12 to 17 in Canada.
The news came less than a week after the province expanded eligibility to anyone 18 and older.
Third straight day of double-digit COVID-19 case counts in Ottawa
Ottawa Public Health said Saturday that 78 more people in the city tested positive for COVID-19 and two more people died.
The new cases bring Ottawa's pandemic totals to 26,503 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 547 resident deaths.
OPH also reported 112 newly resolved cases on Saturday, keeping the number of active cases below 1,000.
York Street Farmers' Market adjusts hours due to anti-lockdown protests
The York Street Farmers' Market is adjusting its hours because of planned anti-mask and anti-lockdown demonstrations that are expected to move through the ByWard Market.
A post on the Ottawa Markets blog says last Saturday's march interfered with vendors at the end of their business day.
"Our team has spoken to the Ottawa Police and the City of Ottawa to determine the legality of such an event and find a potential solution. Despite, in Ottawa Markets opinion, the rally being dangerous, inappropriate, and against Public Health Guidelines, the anti-masking protest will be allowed to continue."
The market will now close at 12 noon instead of 1 p.m. to avoid any crowding as a result of anti-mask and anti-lockdown demonstrators.
Ottawa Markets Executive Director Zachary Dayler told Newstalk 580 CFRA that the last hour of business is typically one of the strongest, meaning the vendors are likely to lose out on sales as a result of the change.
Kingston, Ont. man's t-shirt slogan catching on
A Kingston man is trying to spread a specific message to boost spirits during the pandemic: “Love is More Contagious than COVID-19.”
Ken Foster has created t-shirts with the slogan and has been selling them, with the net proceeds going to food banks across Canada and the U.S. He says more than $1,500 has been raised in Kingston, alone.
The design he created shows people standing six feet apart, but still together, with a backdrop of the night sky, to symbolize that it’s always darkest before the dawn.
That message has resonated with many, and has becomes a popular saying for some in the city
Dr. Kieran Moore, the local medical officer of health, wore the t-shirt to get his own first dose of the vaccine. The local Member of Parliament Mark Gerretson has also worn it.\
