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COVID-19 in Ottawa: Fast Facts for Sept. 17, 2021

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OTTAWA -

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

Fast Facts:

  • Ottawa Bylaw not expecting a 'huge increase' in calls due to COVID-19 vaccine passports
  • Majority of students, staff and faculty fully vaccinated at the University of Ottawa
  • Ottawa's COVID-19 active case count the highest since mid-June
  • New names for three of Canada's COVID-19 vaccines

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

  • New COVID-19 cases: 60 new cases on Thursday
  • Total COVID-19 cases: 29,076
  • COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (previous seven days): 36.1
  • Positivity rate in Ottawa: 3.4 per cent (seven-day average)
  • Reproduction Number: 1.06 (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

  • 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 2 p.m.
  • The Moodie Care and Testing Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. 
  • The Ray Friel Care and Testing Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 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 summer camp children and staff. All campers and staff must complete the COVID-19 School and Childcare 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

Ottawa Bylaw not expecting a 'huge increase' in calls due to COVID-19 vaccine passports

Ottawa Bylaw is not expecting a "huge increase" in calls when Ontario's new COVID-19 vaccine passport rolls out next week.

Starting Sept. 22, people will be required to provide proof of full vaccination to access non-essential businesses, including the indoor areas of restaurants and bars, indoor areas of meeting and event spaces, indoor areas of sports and recreational facilities, concert venues, theatres, cinemas and sporting venues.

Speaking to the Community and Protective Services Committee on Thursday, Bylaw Services Director Roger Chapman described the rules for the COVID-19 vaccine passport as "very basic."

"When you're talking about restaurants, it's indoors only. Inside some of the sports facilities and such, the passport is required."

Coun. Diane Deans asked Chapman if Ottawa Bylaw is prepared to respond to any calls regarding the COVID-19 vaccine passport non-compliance.

"We're not anticipating a huge increase in call volume related to this. I think that, particularly, the restaurant industry has been very good at following the regulations," said Chapman.

A server brings an order to patrons on a steakhouse's outdoor patio in Ottawa on the first day of Ontario's first phase of re-opening amidst the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, on Friday, June 11, 2021. (Justin Tang/THE CANADIAN PRESS)

Majority of students, staff and faculty fully vaccinated at University of Ottawa

More than 90 per cent of students, staff and faculty at the University of Ottawa are fully vaccinated.

Anyone who intends on visiting the uOttawa campus must be fully vaccinated. Students, staff and faculty with an approved accommodation or is partially vaccinated must undergo regular COVID-19 testing on campus.

The University of Ottawa says over 47,000 students, staff and faculty have verified their vaccination status using the COVID-19 Vaccination Declaration online tool.

"90 per cent of the individuals who completed the declaration, declared they are fully vaccinated (two doses); for faculty and staff, the percentage is at 96 per cent," said uOttawa in a statement to CTV News Ottawa.

"Requests for accommodations remain fairly low at less than 3%. Only 0.06% of faculty and staff members (so less that 30 individuals) who used our application system refuse to get vaccinated."

The University of Ottawa campus is quiet, Wednesday, April 22, 2020 in Ottawa. (Adrian Wyld/THE CANADIAN PRESS)

60 new cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa, active cases highest since mid-June

Ottawa Public Health is reporting 60 new cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa on Thursday, the third time in eight days there have been more than 60 new cases of COVID-19 in the capital.

There are no new deaths linked to the virus.

Since the first case of COVID-19 in Ottawa in March 2020, there have been 29.076 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa, including 594 deaths.

There are now 433 active cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa, the highest number of active cases in the capital since mid-June.

 

Health Canada authorizes new names for COVID-19 vaccines

Three COVID-19 vaccines approved for use in Canada now have new names.

Health Canada has authorized brand name changes for the vaccines, adding, "These are only name changes. There are no changes to the vaccines themselves."

The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine will now be named Comirnaty, the Moderna vaccine will be named SpikeVax, and the AstraZeneca vaccine will be named Vaxzevria, Health Canada said in a tweet Thursday.

Empty Moderna vaccine vials are shown before a COVID-19 vaccine drive-thru clinic at Richardson stadium in Kingston, Ont., on Friday, Jul. 2, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Lars Hagberg

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