Ontario Reimposing Strict COVID-19 Restrictions in Light of Less Virulent Omicron Variant.

According to Premier Doug Ford, Ontario is reintroducing stronger COVID-19 restrictions, which include suspending schools and delaying non-urgent operations, in order to “blunt the curve” of growing infection cases throughout the province and prevent the spread of the Omicron variety.

Ontario will revert to a modified “step two” of the Roadmap to Reopen plan, effective at 12:01 a.m. on Jan. 5, which involves postponing children’ return to school by two weeks, beyond the prior postponement of Jan. 5, Ford declared in a news conference on Monday.

Kids will continue to learn remotely, which, according to the premier, “isn’t ideal,” but will provide students and parents peace of mind.

Health Minister Christine Elliot said the measures will be in place for at least 21 days, until Jan. 26, and are subject to modification based on new trends and important indicators, as well as orders from Ontario’s chief medical officer of health.

The news comes as the province prepares for an influx of infection cases and “hundreds of thousands” of hospitalizations in the coming weeks as a result of the highly transmissible Omicron variant.

“Based on a real-world experience here in Ontario, the evidence tells us that about 1 percent of people who get Omicron will end up in the hospital,” Ford added, “That may not seem a lot, and under past waves it might have been something we could withstand, but Omicron isn’t like the other variants. It’s much, much more transmissible. So, the math isn’t on our side. “

“Based on the current trends, our public health experts tell us we can see hundreds of thousands of cases every single day. One percent of hundreds of thousands is too many new patients for our hospitals to handle, one percent of hundreds of thousands is too many new patients for our hospitals to manage,” he added, adding that daily COVID-19-related hospital admissions have been in the “triple digits” in recent days.

On Monday, Ontario recorded 13,578 new cases, with 1,232 patients admitted to hospitals with COVID-19, 248 of whom were in intensive care. This comes after the province recorded 16,714 new cases on Sunday, up from an all-time high of 18,445 the day before.

Dr. Kieran Moore, the Chief Medical Officer of Health, told reporters that infection cases are expected to peak by the end of January and then begin to decline.

While authorities could not specify a specific date for when the current limits will be repealed, Moore stated that the hospitalization rate is now the government’s most critical statistic in making that choice.

Other new rules announced on Monday include a maximum of five persons indoors and ten people outdoors for social gatherings. Indoor eating is restricted in restaurants, bars, and other food and beverage facilities, however takeout, drive-thru, and delivery are permitted.

Indoor high-contact settings, such as museums, theatres, and indoor sport and recreational facilities, will also be closed, while outside sport facilities and enterprises will be permitted to reopen under specified conditions.

Retail establishments, shopping malls, and personal care services will be half-full. Indoor marriages, funerals, and religious ceremonies will be limited to 50% capacity, while outdoor services will be limited to the number of persons who can maintain a physical distance of two metres.

Businesses and organizations are encouraged to have their staff work remotely unless the nature of their business necessitates it.

Furthermore, beginning Jan. 5, the province will halt all non-urgent operations and treatments in order to maintain vital care and human resource capacity in the health-care system—a decision that might effect anywhere from 8,000 to 10,000 surgeries each week.

“Generally what we would look at through a typical week would be somewhere between eight to ten thousand surgeries or other procedures that will be impacted by this policy, so that would be what would add to our waitlist,” said Matt Anderson, CEO of Ontario Health.

The internet has proved to be a place in which you can tune into various frequencies in search of a perspective that best fits your narrative. I could make up an argument on the fly and back it up with facts pertaining to my argument. With that being said, the news about COVID-19 is terrifyingly polarizing. There is a spectrum, by which all narratives of the COVID-19 agenda are carefully presented to anyone conducting research. The opposing sides of the spectrum are those who are sold on the COVID-19 pandemic, and those who aren’t sold at all.

But it becomes extremely important that we listen to our gut, when we notice that someone is eyeballing something that rightfully belongs to you. Our civil liberties are merely gods gift to man interpreted by men of power. No man, woman, government, organization, forum, or anything will prosper as a weapon against God. With that being said, when our God given rights are at stake, it is probably best to question the integrity of those who propose the removal of such rights. In summary, if you’re not a “conspiracy theorist” you probably aren’t asking very many questions about the world around you.

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.

Hosea 4:6

No one man can make sense of this elaborate illusion cast over the common man of society, but collectively we can point out each limitation forced upon us and bring it forward as an injustice to the public. In Matthew 10:34 Jesus says: “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.” We’re meant to go down preaching the gospel and guiding others to salvation. This could be considered the bravest task a man or woman of faith could undertake, but make no mistake it will bear fruit in the kingdom of heaven. Stay inquisitive in the word of God, and the world around you.