Province reveals new COVID-19 testing strategy
The Government of Ontario has announced a new testing strategy for COVID-19 that ensures greater access to tests for anyone–symptomatic or otherwise—and which will eventually include collaboration with the construction industry.
In announcing the plan on May 29, Premier Doug Ford and Health Minister Christine Elliott revealed three branches of testing. The first will be through the more than 130 assessment centres and 20 laboratories across the province.
The second will be through campaigns targeted to vulnerable populations, such as people living in long-term care homes and other shared living spaces like shelters and group homes, as well as targeted testing in priority-sector workplaces where physical distancing may be difficult or impossible.
The third will be through outbreak management, including in specific neighbourhoods and regions or at hospitals, institutions and workplaces.
"Ontario now has the most open and robust testing criteria in the entire country. In fact, anyone who feels they need a test will be able to get a test," said Ford. "Our newly expanded testing strategy is our best defence against stopping the spread of COVID-19 as we gradually and safely reopen the province. More proactive testing will give employers and their employees confidence as they return to work and will fortify our alert system for any potential surge in new cases."
Down the road, the province has said it will work with private-sector workplaces to develop appropriate testing models. Construction will be among those groups of essential workplaces to be incorporated into the testing plans, and sector leaders will be called upon to provide input.
"The significant expansion of testing of symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals will go hand in hand with public health units' ongoing contact tracing and case management efforts to stop the spread of the virus and keep our families and our communities safe," said Elliott. "I just want to caution people, although your test may be negative, you must continue to practise physical distancing, wear a face covering when physical distancing is a challenge, and wash your hands regularly. These simple actions will help keep everyone safe and healthy."
One of the strategies the province intends to deploy in response to an outbreak in a specific neighbourhood, region, institution or workplace is a series of mobile testing teams that can be deployed as and where required.
The province also says it will soon release a strategy to support public health units with case management and contact tracing, including launching a new exposure notification app that will alert Ontarians when they may have been exposed to COVID-19 and recommend appropriate actions.
To date, Ontario has completed more than 680,000 tests to date, and is leading large provinces in daily tests completed. Of those tests, 54.5 percent have been completed by the next day, and 82 percent completed within two days.