Ontarians with COVID-19 will no longer have to self-isolate for five days at home before returning to public places, as is still recommended in Quebec. Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr.r Kieran Moore, made the announcement on Wednesday.
On the other hand, “you should not return to school or in person to work unless your symptoms have improved in the last 24 hours”, mentioned the doctor. These new guidelines from the Ontario government apply to all respiratory illnesses, he said.
People infected with COVID-19 must, however, continue to wear a mask in public for 10 days after the onset of symptoms, underlines the Dr Moore. A person with a positive screening test can therefore now go to school or work if they remain masked; people who have a fever will have to wait for it to go away before doing the same.
According to Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, the province is no longer in a “critical phase” of the pandemic and is now moving into long-term management of COVID-19.
The Dr Moore also warned people of the likely arrival of a new wave of the disease — the eighth — this fall. He recommends that Ontarians wear the mask “when appropriate” and stay home if they are sick.
The medical officer of health also announced Wednesday that Ontario children five years and older are now eligible for a first booster shot against COVID-19 if they received their last dose more than six months ago. Quebec Public Health issued a similar recommendation last week.
This reporting is supported by the Local Journalism Initiative, funded by the Government of Canada.
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