Ontario doctors calling for Province to implement stay-at-home order
Published April 5, 2021 at 9:45 pm
Ontario doctors are concerned about the current state of COVID-19.
Despite the Province’s latest lockdown, the Ontario Medical Association (OMA) believe it’s not enough to curb the spread of the virus, which has seen more than 3,000 new cases for three of the last four days.
In order to slow the spread, the OMA is calling for the Province to impose a stay-at-home order, which would only allow residents to leave their homes for essential reasons—such as grocery shopping, exercise, and medical appointments—as well as the closure of all non-essential businesses, and paid sick leave for all essential workers.
“I know that everyone is exhausted,” Samantha Hill, president of the OMA, said in a news release.
“The last year of living under restrictions, with fluctuating levels of fear, and serious visible inequities, have affected our social, mental and economic health. But right now, we are all in danger. We must implement our strictest level of public health measures. The consequences of not doing so could include more people sick and dying than we have experienced thus far; so many so, that doctors could no longer care for everyone,” she continued.
Additionally, by comparison, during the final week of March in 2020, there were between 211 and 462 new cases each day, while the same time this year saw between 2,333 and 3,089 new, daily cases.
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Further, GTA hospitals have been forced to transfer patients out of the region in order to accommodate the new ones coming in.
Moreover, the OMA believes a lag in reporting means the number of new cases will continue to climb no matter what restrictions are put in place.
“Ontario’s doctors are calling for immediate action to halt the third wave,” Allan O’Dette, CEO of the OMA, said in the same release.
“We are in a dangerous moment right now with case numbers rising at an alarming pace. A new stay-at-home order, vaccines for essential workers, and paid sick days are all sensible policies that will help get infections under control, and support the tireless efforts of our public health doctors as they lead us out of this pandemic,” he continued.
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