Under a new class order from Ottawa’s medical officer of health, anyone in the city who tests positive for COVID-19, is a close contact of a confirmed case or reasonably suspects they might have contracted the coronavirus must now self-isolate for 14 days or until they test negative, lest they face a $5,000 fine.
Dr. Vera Etches made the announcement during a media availability on Tuesday afternoon.
She said she is issuing the class order under Section 22 of the Health Protection and Promotion Act, which Ottawa Public Health (OPH) has used previously in individual cases to solicit information on close contacts from a person who tested positive for the virus.
Under the new order, Ottawa residents must self-isolate if they:
- Have tested positive for the virus;
- Have signs and symptoms of COVID-19;
- Are a close contact of someone who tested positive;
- Have been tested for coronavirus and are awaiting a result;
- Or have otherwise “reasonable grounds” to believe they have COVID-19.
Get weekly health news
The order lasts for 14 days or until the individual receives a negative test.
Violations of the order are subject to $5,000 fines for every day or part of the day of the offence.
Etches issued the order on the same day Ottawa recorded 93 new COVID-19 cases, a new single-day record.
Ottawa’s top doctor said she doesn’t take this step lightly, but the rate of infection in the nation’s capital is “too high,” with the city’s schools and long-term care homes beginning to see outbreaks of the virus.
“We need to bend the curve down right now,” she said.
Ottawa’s bylaw officers are also starting this week to issue fines for anyone caught flaunting the city’s indoor mask requirements.
Etches said too many people aren’t following the rules OPH has set out from the beginning of the pandemic: limit close contacts, physically distance, wear a mask, wash your hands and stay home when sick.
“We must once again plank the curve through our actions,” she said. “It’s each of us. It’s really each of us.”
Some 40 per cent of people aged 20-39 who tested positive for the virus in recent weeks did so after having close contact with someone from outside their household bubble, she said.
Etches also said the social circles messaging from the Ontario government has not been successful in limiting the spread of the virus, as residents seemed to feel it was OK to have one closed bubble one weekend and a different one the next.
Going forward, she’ll be going back to her original messaging: “fewer is better.”
Comments