For the third day in a row, Ontario has recorded more than 2,000 new cases of COVID-19 in a 24-hour period, and the provincial death toll sits at 4,058 according to data released on Dec. 17.

These alarming numbers forced the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA) to request the provincial government to enforce a four-week lockdown in every public health unit currently in the “red” zone or those considered for placement in that zone. 

In a statement released on Dec. 17, the OHA said, “The situation is extremely serious. We are now in the holiday season and if members of the public choose to ignore public health measures and gather outside their households, the consequences risk overwhelming Ontario’s hospitals. Every health care system has its breaking point.”

As of Dec. 17, seven public health units are in the “red zone,” including Durham, Halton, Hamilton, Middlesex-London, Simcoe-Muskoka, Waterloo, and Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph.

Toronto, Peel Region, York Region, and Windsor-Essex are the only areas currently under lockdown, or in the “grey” zone. 

Ontario Premier Doug Ford, at a news conference on Dec. 17, did not commit to any further lockdown measures. He did, however, comment that “everything is on the table,” when asked about any decisions the government may make to slow the spread of COVID-19 in the province. 

Source: CTV News, CBC News