Ottawa’s top doctor calls for more restrictions to stop Omicron spread

Ottawa’s top doctor says more restrictions will be needed to halt the spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 in the capital.

“Vaccination is not enough to help improve the situation and make it through this surge,” medical officer of health Dr. Vera Etches told reporters on Thursday. “We need to decrease capacity.

“I am absolutely prepared to write a letter of instruction under the Reopening Ontario Act to take a look at how we can protect each other with capacity limits.”

Instituting a public health order with new restrictions requires a discussion with the office of Ontario’s chief medical officer of health, she said.

“There are still discussions happening provincially about what may be done this week, and we are also talking about what may be done at the local level.”

Premier Doug Ford announced Wednesday that capacity for indoor facilities that can hold more than 1,000 people will be capped at 50 per cent starting Saturday.

“Locking ourselves down out of this isn’t the solution,” Ford said on Wednesday.

But public health officials across the province have said that’s not enough.

Etches said new measures to limit close contacts through capacity limits will be needed “as soon as possible.” But businesses will also need some lead time to prepare.

“We know that businesses need some notice to be able to implement measures, so we’d like to give them at least a couple of days notice before things could be in place,” she said.

“This is really, really tough. This is not what we wanted for businesses at this time of year.”

The number of active COVID-19 cases in Ottawa is its highest in months. Although hospitalizations remain low, experts warn the rapidly spreading variant could quickly lead to a rise in serious cases and put renewed pressure on the health care system.

“We know it will put a significant strain on our health care system,” Etches said.

City ramping up vaccinations

Etches said the city works to quickly ramp up vaccination capacity, with all adults eligible to receive a COVID-19 booster shot starting Monday.

In Ottawa that represents about 750,000 people—three-quarters of the population.

“This is a massive undertaking, but we’ve done it before and we will do it again,” Etches said.

The health unit has opened a new mass vaccination clinic at the EY Centre to accommodate another 2,700 people per day.

Thursday afternoon, the health unit released 10,600 more appointments at the EY Centre and the Nepean Sportsplex curling rink, beginning Saturday.

Staff in the health unit are being redirected from other programs, such as mental health and home visits for new parents, to help with vaccinations.

“It’s not ideal, but that is how critical this work is.”

Etches said OPH is continuing to explore options to open more appointments and expanding capacity.

Emergency operations centre activated, contact tracers overwhelmed

On Monday, the city’s emergency operations centre moved from enhanced to activated operations.

“We’re working hand in hand around the clock to get capacity increased at vaccination centres,” Mayor Jim Watson said. “I ask for your patience an understanding over the next few days while we ramp up our capacity.”

And Ottawa Public Health has asked people to notify their close contacts if they test positive for COVID-19.

High-risk contacts are then asked to go get tested for COVID-19 regardless of their vaccination status—new guidance due to the Omicron variant.