Ontario reports 89 more COVID-linked deaths over last 3 weeks

Ontario on Wednesday reported the deaths of 89 more people with COVID-19, which the province says happened over the last three weeks.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Health said in an email that of the newly reported deaths, six occurred yesterday. Twenty-three deaths happened on Jan. 24 and an additional 27 came on Jan. 23, "with the remaining occurring in the preceding days," according to provincial spokesperson Alexandra Hilkene.

Ontario's official death toll stands at 11,160.

Meanwhile, the ministry logged a slight decrease in the number of patients with COVID-19 in intensive care units, from 626 down to 608. The drop of 18 is the biggest one-day decline so far in the ongoing Omicron-driven wave of the pandemic.

Roughly 83 per cent were admitted to ICUs for COVID-related illnesses, while 17 per cent tested positive for the virus after being transferred to critical care for another reason.

The total number of patients with COVID-19 in hospitals rose to 4,016, an increase of eight from the day before.

There were also 5,368 new virus cases reported, but Public Health Ontario has said the real case count is likely higher because of changes to the province's testing policy.

Fifty-seven per cent of the province's long-term care homes were experiencing COVID-19 outbreaks as of Wednesday.

Ontario isn't reporting data on COVID-19 cases in schools, but 195 schools reported more than 30 per cent of students and staff absent on Tuesday and four schools were closed.

Child-care operators call for access to PCR testing

Ontario child-care operators and staff are calling on the provincial government to take steps to make those settings safer during the COVID-19 pandemic and to ensure the sector's long-term viability.

One immediate step urged by the dozens of operators, labour groups and public health experts who have signed on to an open letter to the premier is to reinstate eligibility for PCR testing.

Late last year in response to a surge in Omicron cases, the province limited access to PCR testing to high-risk settings, which doesn't include child-care centres or schools, except if a student or staff member develops symptoms while at school.

The child-care operators and staff say allowing access to PCR testing would mean centres could track cases and parents would only have to isolate at home with their child for one or two days in the event of a negative result, instead of five.

They also say that the province should provide enough HEPA filters for each classroom and common area in Ontario's over 5,000 child-care programs — settings in which children are largely unmasked.

The letter also calls on the government to increase financial support to licensed child-care programs to ensure recruitment and retention of staff, and to sign on to the federal government's $10-a-day child-care plan.