Ontario to release further COVID-19 reopening plans on Friday

A Ministry of Health spokesperson has confirmed that Ontario will announce further reopening plans on Friday.

The spokesperson said that the plan will reveal how the province can safely manage COVID-19 while stabilizing the economy.

“Tomorrow we will be releasing Ontario’s plan to safely reopen and manage COVID-19 for the long term,” the spokesperson said.

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Thursday’s usual COVID-19 technical briefing is postponed until Friday as Dr. Kieran Moore will be in attendance at the announcement.

The long awaited announcement comes after news of reopening plans began being reported last week. At the time, a Ministry of Health spokesperson confirmed to Daily Hive that a plan was in the works but did not give an official date.

Ontario has been in Step 3 since mid-July when COVID-19 cases began to creep up. Ontario’s COVID-19 cases have remained stable this fall, even with the return to school, and the seven-day rolling average now sits just above 400.

The province’s chief medical officer of health told reporters that he would be presenting Ontario with a plan and that the government would have the final word.

“We will not be doing this suddenly,” Dr. Kieran Moore said before Thanksgiving. “This will be slow, gradual and cautious following data like we’ve been doing for the last year and a half.”

Moving on from Step 3 of Ontario’s reopening plan could mean lifting capacity limits in restaurants and gyms. On October 8, the province lifted capacity limits for sporting events, movie theatres and indoor concerts.