COVID-19 in Ottawa: Fast Facts for Oct. 24, 2021

A cyclist makes their way along the banks of the Ottawa River in Ottawa on Wednesday, Oct. 20, 2021. (Sean Kilpatrick/THE CANADIAN PRESS)

OTTAWA -

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

Fast Facts:

• The number of active COVID-19 cases in Ottawa held steady on Saturday.
• Ontario saw fewer than 400 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday.
• Canada's employment minister is suggesting a new COVID-19 benefit would only apply in cases of total lockdown.

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

• New COVID-19 cases: 36 cases on Saturday.
• Total COVID-19 cases: 30,668
• COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (previous seven days): 20.2
• Positivity rate in Ottawa: 1.7 per cent (seven-day average)
• Reproduction Number: 1.13 (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 are a patient and/or their 1 accompanying escort tra­velling out of country for medical treatment;
• 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.

Long-term care staff, caregivers, volunteers and visitors who are fully immunized against COVID-19 are not required to present a negative COVID-19 test before entering or visiting a long-term care home.

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

• COVID-19 Assessment Centre at McNabb Arena at 180 Percy St.: Open Monday to Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
• 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. 
• The Moodie Care and Testing Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.  Saturday, Oct. 23 and Saturday, Oct. 30 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• The Ray Friel Care and Testing Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 24 and Sunday, Oct. 31 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• 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 schools in Ottawa and eastern Ontario. All students, teachers and school staff must complete the COVID-19 School screening tool daily.

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

Active COVID-19 cases in Ottawa hold steady

Ottawa Public Health says 36 more people in Ottawa have tested positive for COVID-19 and the cases of another 36 people who had previously tested positive are now resolved.

To date, OPH has reported 30,668 lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa. No new deaths were reported on Saturday, keeping the city's pandemic death toll steady at 602 residents.

The number of known active cases is unchanged from Friday, with the same number of new cases and newly resolved cases.

The seven-day average for cases is 28.6 cases per day, down slightly from 28.9 last week. Four weeks ago, the seven-day average was 51.9 cases per day. 

 

COVID-19 Cases in Ottawa
Infogram

Ontario records 373 new COVID-19 cases, six more deaths

Across the province, Public Health Ontario confirmed another 373 new cases. Another six Ontarians have died due to COVID-19 and 419 previously reported cases are now considered resolved.

Out of Ontario's 373 new cases, 264 are in people who are unvaccinated or whose vaccination status is unknown. There are 109 cases in fully vaccinated cases.

There are 136 people in ICUs across the province. Sixteen are fully vaccinated and 120 are unvaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status.

Ottawa Public Health data suggest unvaccinated people are 10 times more likely to contract COVID-19 than fully vaccinated people are.

A person waits to receive their COVID-19 vaccine during a drive-thru clinic at Richardson stadium in Kingston, Ont., on Friday, Jul. 2, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Lars Hagberg

New benefit for workers only intended for those in 'complete' lockdowns: Qualtrough

A new COVID-19 benefit the federal government has proposed appears to be aimed at regions where a "complete" lockdown becomes necessary, according to a CTVNews.ca report.

In an interview on CTV’s Question Period airing today, Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion Minister Carla Qualtrough said the details of the new Canada Worker Lockdown Benefit have not been finalized. She suggested that this benefit would apply to workers who are affected by a lockdown, as defined by their provincial government.

The benefit is meant to replace the Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB), which was the successor to the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB). The CRB is available until May 7, 2022 retroactive to Oct. 24 and provides $300 a week to eligible applicants.

Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland and Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion Carla Qualtrough holds a press conference on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Thursday, Sept. 24, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick