Ontario extends emergency orders to July 22

Special to WC Online

July 9, 2020 wadmin 0 Comments

ONTARIO — The Ontario government has extended the ongoing emergency orders to July 22.

“The Ontario government, in consultation with Ontario’s chief medical officer of health, has extended all emergency orders currently in force that were made under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act to July 22,” the government released in a statement today (July 9). “The extension was made to ensure the province maintains the necessary flexibility to protect public health and safety as more businesses reopen and people go back to work.”

The extension of the emergency orders will help protect vulnerable people, such as seniors, by allowing the redeployment of frontline staff in long-term care facilities, retirement homes and other congregate care settings, like women’s shelters and residential services. In addition, the extension would allow public health units to redeploy or hire staff to support case management and contact tracing.

“Our government is getting Ontario back on track and more people back to work, but at the same time taking steps to ensure we don’t undo the tremendous progress we have made together,” Premier Doug Ford said. “By keeping these emergency measures in place, we will continue to support our frontline care providers, protect our most vulnerable, and ensure we can rapidly respond to potential outbreaks or surges.”

The government intends to extend emergency orders to align with the Reopening Ontario (A Flexible Response to COVID-19) Act, 2020, if passed. This proposed legislation is part of the government’s plan to cautiously reopen Ontario in a way that recognizes the ongoing impacts of COVID-19 even after the provincial declaration of emergency has ended. The bill, if passed, would allow Ontario to continue its path to recovery by easing restrictions where appropriate, while maintaining important select tools to address the ongoing threat of this deadly virus and protect Ontarians.

A full list of emergency orders can be found on the e-Laws website under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act and at Ontario.ca/alert.

The Government of Ontario declared a provincial emergency on March 17, under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act. The declaration of emergency was extended and is currently in effect until July 15.

The government brought forward a motion in the Ontario legislature that, if passed, would extend the provincial declaration of emergency until July 24.