OTTAWA -- Good morning. Here is the latest news on COVID-19 and its impact on Ottawa.
Fast Facts:
- 30,000 Ottawa residents book COVID-19 vaccine appointments as eligibility expands
- Five Ottawa pharmacies are scheduled to receive the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine this weekend
- Ottawa's weekly incidence rate drops to the lowest level in a month
- Toronto COVID-19 patients no longer being transferred to Ottawa Hospital, CEO says
COVID-19 by the numbers in Ottawa (Ottawa Public Health data):
- New COVID-19 cases: 106 on Thursday
- Total COVID-19 cases: 24,998
- COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (previous seven days): 98.1
- Positivity rate in Ottawa: 6.7 per cent (April 28 to May 4)
- Reproduction Number: 0.91 (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
30,000 Ottawa residents book COVID-19 vaccine appointments on Thursday, 37,000 new appointments added for May
The city of Ottawa has added thousands of new COVID-19 vaccination appointments in May as the province expands eligibility to receive the shot.
The eligibility to book a COVID-19 vaccine appointment expanded on Thursday to include residents aged 50 and over, individuals with high-risk health conditions, and some individuals who cannot work from home.
Ottawa's general manager of emergency and protective services Anthony Di Monte tells CTV News at Five with Matt Skube that more than 30,000 eligible residents booked appointments on Thursday.
"As I mentioned (Wednesday), we had 60,000 new appointments in the system and as of 3 p.m. more than half of those are already booked, which is good news. That means people are getting in and getting their appointments, and that's great," said Di Monte.
"Even better news, today we added another 37,000 to the available appointments, so there are still about 66,000 appointments available. So those new eligible groups I would encourage people please go online and book your appointments so you can get your vaccine."
These Ottawa pharmacies will receive the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine
Pharmacies in Ottawa's hot spot postal codes K1T and K1V will receive doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine this week.
Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Lisa MacLeod tweeted out a list of five Ottawa pharmacies that will receive the Moderna vaccine.
KIT
- Bridle Path Pharmacy at 4000 Bridle Path Drive in Gloucester
K1V
- The Drugstore Pharmacy at 2681 Alta Vista Drive
- Promed Pharmacy at 2706 Alta Vista Drive
- Rexall at 1725 Walkley Road
- Walmart Pharmacy at 2210 Bank Street
106 new cases of COVID-19 as Ottawa's weekly incidence rate drops to lowest level in a month
Ottawa Public Health reported 106 new cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa on Thursday, while a key COVID-19 indicator dropped to its lowest level since early April.
Two Ottawa residents have died due to COVID-19 related illnesses.
Since the first case of COVID-19 on March 11, 2020, there have been 24,998 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa, including 519 deaths.
Ottawa's weekly COVID-19 incidence rate fell Thursday to 98.1 cases per 100,000. It's the first time the weekly incidence rate has been below 100 cases per 100,000 people since April 2, when it was 97.2 cases per 100,000 people.
Toronto COVID-19 patients no longer being transferred to Ottawa Hospital, CEO says
The head of the Ottawa Hospital says COVID-19 patient transfers from Toronto-area hospitals have stopped, helping to relieve some of the pressure on the hospital during the third wave of the pandemic.
Ottawa hospitals have received 50 to 60 patient transfers from the Toronto-area over the past month or so.
