Doug Ford says help is on the way for Waterloo Region’s COVID-19 fight

Ontario Premier Doug Ford says help is on the way for Waterloo Region, which has recently been pegged as the worst in the province for the spread of COVID-19.

On Thursday morning, the premier announced that the province would move into Step 2 of the provincial reopening plan but within a couple of hours, Waterloo Region officials said, ‘not so fast.’

Medical officer of health Dr. Hsiu-Li Wang and Regional Chair Karen Redman announced that Waterloo Region would delay its move into Step 2 for an indefinite amount of time.

At around the same time, the province released its daily update, reporting 296 new COVID-19 cases, with 95 of those being reported in Waterloo Region, far and away the highest number reported in the province.

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On Wednesday afternoon, Ford released a statement saying he had spoken with Redman and Wang about the ongoing situation in the area.

“The province is doing everything possible to support the Waterloo Region at this time, and have allocated over 44,000 additional vaccines to the region,” the premier stated.

“We are also providing a mobile team capable of administering over 500 doses a day to high priority areas.

“We will continue to be there for the people of Kitchener-Waterloo, and will provide the local public health unit with additional vaccines and resources should they need them.”