Ontario may need to reinstate some capacity limits: Science Table

The head of Ontario’s COVID-19 Science Advisory Table says the province may need to put some restrictions back in place as cases begin to rise.

Dr. Peter Juni told radio station Newstalk 580 that the “second honeymoon is over” and that COVID-19 cases in Ontario are trending upwards.

“What we’re seeing now is a result of lifting capacity limits and the temperature drop and, therefore, we’re now having exponential growth in the province,” he said in the interview.

You might also like:
• Ontario lifting capacity limits, easing public health measures
• Ontario moves into first phase of new COVID-19 reopening plan
• Ontario expands third dose eligibility for COVID-19 vaccines

He said that he’s seeing too many people at sporting events without masks, and that he’s heard some places are not checking vaccine certificates in areas that require them.

“We can’t let it linger and we can’t pretend the pandemic is over,” he said.

He added that the province is currently on the wrong track, but there’s no need to panic yet, as things are not out of control.

Juni told Newstalk 580 that lifting capacity limits was “an experiment” and that it had always been intended as such.

He said it is possible that in a few weeks, the Science Table will recommend that capacity limits will need to be “fine tuned.”

“If you do a little of the right thing, you will continue to go back to the right track,” Juni told Newstalk 580.

On Tuesday, Ontario reported 441 new COVID-19 cases, and the seven-day rolling average is now at 492. This past weekend, the province reported more than 636 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, the highest single-day report since early October.

The province began lifting capacity limits in October and has since set a plan to lift all COVID-19 restrictions by early 2022.