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

Fast Facts:

  • 40 new cases of COVID-19 and one new death was reported in Ottawa on Monday.
  • Ontario broke another daily case count record.
  • The Ontario government plans to keep Dr. David Williams on as Chief Medical Officer of Health beyond his planned retirement in February.
  • Drug maker AstraZeneca says its COVID-19 vaccine is 90 per cent effective and can be stored at much warmer temperatures than its competition. 
  • Ontario has tapped Canada's former Chief of Defence Staff to lead its COVID-19 vaccine distribution task force.

Testing:

Who should get a test?

Ottawa Public Health says there are four reasons to seek testing for COVID-19:

  • You are showing COVID-19 symptoms. OR
  • 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. OR
  • You are a resident or work in a setting that has a COVID-19 outbreak, as identified and informed by Ottawa Public Health. OR
  • You are eligible for testing as part of a targeted testing initiative directed by the Ministry of Health or the Ministry of Long-Term Care.

Where to get tested for COVID-19 in Ottawa:

The COVID-19 Assessment Centre at 151 Brewer Way is open seven days a week. Appointments are required in most cases but LIMITED walk-up capacity is available.

To book a test for an adult, click here.

The CHEO Assessment Centre at Brewer Arena – 151 Brewer Way is open seven days a week. Testing is available by appointment only.

To book a test for a child under the age of 18, click here.

The COVID-19 Care and Testing Centre at 595 Moodie Dr. is open from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday to Friday. The centre offers an appointment with a physician (including appropriate tests) for residents who are experiencing more significant symptoms like fever, difficulty breathing or a sore throat, or testing only for residents with mild symptoms or others who qualify for testing under current guidelines.

To book an appointment, click here. 

The COVID-19 Care and Testing Centre at 1485 Heron Rd. is open from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday to Friday. The centre offers an appointment with a physician (including appropriate tests) for residents who are experiencing more significant symptoms like fever, difficulty breathing or a sore throat, or testing only for residents with mild symptoms or others who qualify for testing under current guidelines.

To book an appointment, click here.

The COVID-19 Care and Testing Centre at the Ray Friel Recreation Complex – 1585 Tenth Line Rd. is open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. It offers an appointment with a physician (including appropriate tests) for residents who are experiencing more significant symptoms like fever, difficulty breathing or a sore throat, or testing only for residents with mild symptoms or others who qualify for testing under current guidelines.

To book an appointment, click here.

The COVID-19 drive-thru assessment centre at the National Arts Centre. The centre is open seven days a week, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

To book an appointment, click here.

The COVID-19 Assessment Centre at the McNabb Community Centre opens on Tuesday. The centre, located at 180 Percy Street, will operate Monday to Friday, 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

To book an appointment, click here.

The Centretown Community Health Centre at 420 Cooper St. offers COVID-19 testing from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. To book an appointment, call 613-789-1500.

The Sandy Hill Community Health Centre at 221 Nelson St. offers COVID-19 testing from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday to Friday.  Click here to book an appointment or call 613-789-1500

The Somerset Community Health Centre at 55 Eccles St. will offer COVID-19 testing from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday to Thursday, and 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Friday. To book an appointment, call 613-789-1500.

See here for a list of other testing sites in Ottawa and eastern Ontario.

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 swallow, 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 sees 40 new COVID-19 cases, one new death on Monday

Ottawa Public Health is reporting 40 new cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa on Monday, on a day when the number of new cases across Ontario reached a new high watermark.

One new death was reported in Ottawa.

According to Ottawa Public Health's COVID-19 dashboard, there have been 8,212 total laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa since the pandemic began.

With an additional person in Ottawa passing away, the death toll from COVID-19 now stands at 367 residents.

 

Ontario breaks another COVID-19 record

Ontario health officials recorded more than 1,500 new COVID-19 infections in the province on Monday, marking another new record in the daily-reported number of cases in the province.

Health officials confirmed 1,589 new cases of the novel coronavirus on Monday. This is the third straight day in which the province has reported case counts above the 1,500 mark. On Saturday, the province logged the previous record-breaking 1,588 new cases and on Sunday, the province logged 1,534.

Toronto COVID-19

Ontario's top doctor pushing back retirement amid second wave of COVID-19

The public health official that has led Ontario’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic has agreed to push back his retirement and remain on the job through most of 2021.

Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Williams was supposed to leave his role in February but in a statement issued on Monday morning Health Minister Christine Elliott revealed that he has agreed to be reappointed to the role for a term that would commence on Feb. 16, 2021 and conclude on Sep. 1, 2021.

In order to be formalized, the reappointment still needs to be approved by a majority of MPPs at Queen’s Park.

Dr. David Williams

AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine shown to be effective and cheaper

Drugmaker AstraZeneca said Monday that late-stage trials showed its COVID-19 vaccine is highly effective, buoying the prospects of a relatively cheap, easy-to-store product that may become the vaccine of choice for the developing world.

The Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine was 90% effective in preventing COVID-19 in one of the dosing regimens tested; it was less effective in another. Earlier this month, rival drugmakers Pfizer and Moderna reported preliminary results from late-stage trials showing their vaccines were almost 95% effective.

While the AstraZeneca vaccine can be stored at 2 degrees to 8 degrees Celsius, the Pfizer and Moderna products must be stored at much colder temperatures, although Moderna's vaccine candidate can survive refrigerated conditions for up to 30 days.

AstraZeneca trial

Ontario taps former head of Canadian military to lead COVID-19 vaccine distribution task force

The Ontario government is calling on the former head of the Canadian Armed Forces to lead its newly announced COVID-19 vaccine distribution task force.

Premier Doug Ford made the announcement Monday, saying that retired Gen. Rick Hillier will chair the group while advising the province’s development and eventual rollout of the immunization program.

He and a group of experts in operations and logistics, federal-provincial relations, public health, immunization and ethics will lead the task force in the delivery, storage and distribution of the vaccines.

Rick Hillier

With files from CTV News Toronto and The Associated Press.