Hastings Prince Edward Public Health
Online Bulletin for Municipal Partners September 7, 2021 | To ensure everyone has current information, Hastings Prince Edward Public Health will be providing regular COVID-19 updates. For more information please review our website or call 613-966-5500 or 1-800-267-2803. | Summary of cases of COVID-19: Ontario, January 15, 2020 to September 6, 2021 | Report | Number | Percentage | | Number of Cases | 570,778 | N/A | | Change from previous day’s report (new cases) | 564 | 0.1 increase | | Resolved | 554,953 | 97.2 | | Change from previous report | 688 | 0.1 increase | | Total number of deaths | 9,553 | 1.7 | | Total tests completed | 17,397,226 | N/A | | Total test completed in the previous day | 17,118 | N/A | | Currently under investigation | 8,733 | N/A | | Upcoming Vaccination Clinics - Turning 12 and over in 2021 Quinte Sports and Wellness Centre Tuesday, September 7 – 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Wednesday, September 8 – 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Tuesday, September 14 – 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Thursday, September 16 – 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Prince Edward Community Centre Monday, September 13 – 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Monday, September 20 – 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Monday, September 27 – 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Bancroft Legion Br 181 Tuesday, September 7 – 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Tuesday, September 14 – 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Tuesday, September 21 – 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Tuesday, September 28 – 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Upcoming Pop-Up Clinics September 12 - Rathbun Park Gazebo in Deseronto 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Please note all clinics are now offering walk-ins for all individuals born in 2009 or earlier for first and second doses. See our Booking and Eligibility page for up-to-date information. | Ontario to Require Proof of Vaccination in Select Settings: - As of September 22nd, Ontarians will need to be fully vaccinated (two doses plus 14 days) and provide their proof of vaccination along with photo ID to access certain public settings and facilities. This approach focuses on higher-risk indoor public settings where face coverings cannot always be worn and includes:
- Restaurants, nightclubs, meeting and events spaces, gyms, fitness and sports recreational facilities, sporting events, concerts, cinemas, clubs, casinos, bingo halls, gaming establishments and racing venues.
- Spaces and businesses exempt from vaccine certificates include: salons, retail stores, outdoor restaurant and bar patios, places of worship, youth recreational sports programs. In addition, these requirements will not apply to settings where people receive medical care, food from grocery stores and medical supplies.
- Ontarians can access a PDF COVID-19 vaccine certificate with the information needed to prove they are fully vaccinated at http://covid19.ontariohealth.ca. The province will develop and launch a new verification app that businesses and facilities can use to validate unique QR codes by October 22nd.
- Children who are 11 years of age and younger and unable to be vaccinated will also be exempted from these requirements. Individuals with medical exemption will be permitted entry with a doctor’s note until recognized medical exemptions can be integrated as part of a digital vaccine certificate.
- The government will work to support implementation of vaccine certificates for Indigenous communities whether or not they have opted to enter their data into COVaxON, while maintaining Indigenous data governance, control, access and possession principles.
- Media reports indicate Ontario’s Ministry of Health has confirmed that there will be only two valid medical exemptions from COVID-19 vaccinations. One would be an allergy to an ingredient of the vaccine, and the other is if an individual suffered myocarditis or pericarditis after the first dose of a vaccine.
- Health Minister Elliott confirmed that vaccine bookings more than doubled in Ontario the day after the government announced a vaccine certificate program would be implemented by September 22nd. So far, over 10 million Ontarians are fully vaccinated, or 67.8% of the total population and 76.7% of those aged 12 and older.
Cause for Delaying the Vaccine Certificate: - Asked why it took so long to adopt a vaccine certificate for Ontario, Premier Ford said he "wasn't in favour of this," but reconsidered the matter after he said that the federal government would not be implementing a nation-wide passport.
- He said “a national system is far better than a patchwork of certificates across every province and territory in the country. But Justin Trudeau has told us they will not be rolling out a national vaccine passport while the election is ongoing. We can’t wait any longer.”
Perspectives of Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health: - Asked why certain settings, including retail, salons and places of worship were exempt from vaccine certificates, Dr. Moore said the province is “trying to be as evidence-based as possible” and "the venues that we have chosen are responsive to the risk we've found in Ontario."
- He indicated that “if the risk increases in other venues, we can add and implement additional measures to protect Ontarians.”
- Asked why restaurant servers are not mandated to show proof of vaccination but patrons are, Dr. Moore said any business can introduce an immunization policy for their business and employees. He added that restaurant employees have a whole suite of tools that are there to protect workers against transmission of infection. (i.e. screening protocols, appropriate infection prevention and control equipment).
- After raising concerns about an anticipated rise of cases in the fall, Dr. Moore cited new data from the Science Table that shows the number of days for the COVID-19 virus to double has increased from 22 days last week to 30 days.
- He said the public health measures that are in place are “working for us …we had a heightened risk just a few weeks ago, it’s plateauing out and… we’re going to monitor that data as colleges, universities and students go back, and then make decisions with the government on further reopening.”
Analytics Related to Projections and Modelling: Here are the key findings from the Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table’s recent modeling projections: - Ontario is in the 4th wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and it is predicted to be substantial.
- There will be fewer severely ill cases in those that are vaccinated vs those that are unvaccinated and a rapid increase in the number of seriously ill people needing hospital care is expected as workplaces and education reopen in September.
- The fourth wave will affect all age groups with the potential to exceed ICU capacity.
- Because of the Delta variant and to avoid a lockdown in the Fall, vaccination needs to accelerate substantially above 85% of the eligible population aged 12+ fully vaccinated. Therefore, contacts need to reduce to about 70% of pre-pandemic levels until vaccination is high enough to protect the population through:
- Reducing indoor density, maintaining physical distancing, limiting large gatherings;
- Continuing indoor mask policies and working from home; and
- Implementing policies that accelerate vaccination (e.g. certificates, mandates, outreach).
| New Measures For Fully Vaccinated International Travellers To Canada Will Come Into Force: - The Government of Canada will allow fully vaccinated foreign nationals meeting the conditions to enter Canada for discretionary (non-essential) purposes starting on September 7, 2021. This decision is based on the latest available data, scientific evidence and epidemiological situation both in Canada and internationally
-
Beginning at 12:01 am EDT on September 7, 2021, fully vaccinated foreign nationals will be eligible to enter Canada for discretionary (non-essential) reasons, such as tourism; however, these individuals must: - be fully vaccinated: a traveller must have received, and show proof of, the full series of a vaccine — or combination of vaccines — accepted by the Government of Canada at least 14 days prior to entering Canada
- Currently, those vaccines are manufactured by Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, AstraZeneca/COVISHIELD, and Janssen (Johnson & Johnson)
- have a valid pre-arrival COVID-19 molecular test result taken no more than 72 hours before their scheduled flight or their arrival at the land border crossing, or a previous positive test result taken between 14 and 180 days before departure to Canada. Antigen tests, often called “rapid tests,” are not accepted
- be asymptomatic
- submit their mandatory information via ArriveCAN (App or website), including proof of vaccination in English or French and a quarantine plan
- be admissible under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, and
- take a test on arrival, if selected
Latest COVID-19 Federal Modelling Data: The key messages from the modelling data are listed below: - National Rt remains above 1, maintaining a national epidemic growth pattern
- Ongoing rapid acceleration of COVID-19 cases reflected in increasing severe illness.
- Since the previous update, average daily case counts have increased rapidly from over 640 per day nationally to almost 3,500 per day.
- Regional COVID-19 trends show hospital and ICU occupancy increasing, following weeks of rapidly increasing cases in some jurisdictions
- The latest 7-day average for the number of people with COVID-19 being treated in our hospitals each day has more than doubled, since the last update to over 1,200 daily. Of these, on average fewer than 440 were being treated in intensive care units, and there were an average of 13 deaths reported daily.
- Vaccine coverage has increased stepwise as vaccination programs expanded to younger age groups, but uptake has slowed more recently.
- Evidence shows COVID-19 vaccines are highly protective, even with the emergence and spread of the Delta variant in Canada.
- New cases among unvaccinated people were 12 times higher than in the fully vaccinated
- Hospitalized cases among unvaccinated people were 36 times higher than in the fully vaccinated
- Immediate acceleration of vaccine uptake, with increased uptake among adults, aged 18-39 years, could dampen the impact on hospitalization
- Longer-range forecast still showing strong resurgence trajectory, but strengthening measures to reduce spread could slow acceleration
- Short-term forecast predicts an increased rate of growth for cumulative cases but not for cumulative deaths.
- Cumulative cases predicted to September 12th: 1,534,770 to 1,570,230
- Cumulative deaths predicted to September 12th: 27,025 to 27,260
Vaccine Update: - As of September 2nd, over 53.5 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in Canada, with over 84% of people aged 12 years or older have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine and 77% are now fully vaccinated.
- Age-specific vaccine coverage data, as of August 28th, show that from 63% to 94% of people in the eligible age groupings have received at least one dose and from 74% to 96% are fully vaccinated.
- Dr Tam noted that “as we head into the fall, covering this last stretch to reach very high vaccine coverage across all eligible age groups could prove crucial to reducing the impact of the Delta-driven wave.”
- She said "the bottom line is that millions of people across Canada remain unvaccinated and at high risk of COVID-19 infection and severe illness outcomes."
Target Vaccination Rate and Need for Booster Shots: - Asked what level of vaccination rate would be needed to slow the Delta variant’s impact in Canada, Dr. Tam said "there's no magic number,” but “certainly over 80 percent coverage in that eligible population as fast as possible.”
- Dr. Tam noted that the National Advisory Committee on Immunization is currently looking into whether a third dose of a COVID-19 vaccine would be beneficial to those who are immunocompromised and who may not mount a strong immune response.
- She said "while that is being rapidly analyzed, I would ask for caution and patience for a booster dose for the rest of the population because we haven't seen enough data, and based on the information we have at hand in Canada we're not seeing a lot of breakthrough infections."
- Since the available COVID-19 vaccines offer significant protection against hospitalization and death, Dr. Tam indicated there isn’t much data at the moment to suggest that boosters are needed for the general population.
Health Canada Authorizes the Use of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine in Youth: - On August 27, 2021, the Public Health Agency of Canada released updated advice from the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) on the use of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines in adolescents 12 to 17 years of age. This updated advice follows Health Canada's authorization of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine for adolescents 12 years of age and older. This recommendation is based on current scientific evidence and NACI's expert opinion.
- Clinical trial findings suggest the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna mRNA vaccines provide very good protection against symptomatic COVID-19 infection and have a favourable benefit versus risk profile in adolescents 12 years of age and older.
- NACI considered the rare cases of myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle) and/or pericarditis (inflammation of the tissue surrounding the heart) following immunization with mRNA COVID-19 vaccines which have been reported both in Canada and internationally, when making this recommendation.
- NACI already recommended vaccination of adolescents with Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine following regulatory approval in May 2021, and now is including Moderna COVID-19 vaccine in those recommendations.
| | We want to ensure this bulletin is as useful as possible. Please send your questions, comments and suggestions to communications@hpeph.ca | | You have received this email at from Hastings Prince Edward Public Health as a result of a request you have made or due to a service/subscription that you are registered for. While you may discontinue your subscription to this mailing at any time by pressing the unsubscribe button below, this bulletin will be used to provide important updates about COVID-19 in our community. | | | | |
.png?1580149442840)
.png?1578593886679)