Simcoe-Muskoka’s Medical Officer of Health Dr. Charles Gardner thinks tougher COVID-19 restrictions may be on their way.
Asked about Premier Doug Ford’s hinting of a province-wide shutdown to curb the third wave of infections, Dr. Gardner said looking at the numbers now, they are headed in that direction.
“We see overall in the province a very high rate of transmission, we see a high percent positivity, we see very high utilization of ICU beds and Hospital use in large urban centres in the GTA […] we certainly are aware of the variants of concern, they appear to be indeed more transmissible and affecting people more severely at a younger age,” He said in his weekly update on Tuesday.
Dr. Gardner said given all these indicators, he believes a province-wide lockdown will be “needed” to fight off the incoming wave.