On Friday, November 13 Ontario lowered the thresholds for imposing stricter COVID-19 measures under its colour-coded framework. Under the modified system, a region will be categorized as a red zone if it records a weekly incidence rate of 40 or more per 100,000 people, and a per cent positivity rate of 2.5 or more. The new thresholds will come into effect Monday, November 16 meaning the Hamilton, Halton, Toronto and York regions will all be under “red” alert, the strictest measures.
To read about the new framework and see what colour your region is in, visit the Government of Ontario’s webpage. While the provision of health services has not been impacted, it is important for RDTs to be cognizant of these restrictions and the incident rates in their region. Implementing additional precautions, such as treating individuals who screen negative for COVID-19 as positive, in high incidence areas may limit the spread of the virus.
