The Ontario government has extended its stay-at-home order for 28 public health regions across the province until Feb. 16.
For Toronto, Peel and York regions, it's proposed that the order remain in place until Monday, Feb. 22. Final decisions on these orders will be subject to review of the trends in public health indicators.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford made the announcement Monday afternoon, while indicating that the declaration of a state of emergency will not be extended beyond Feb. 9.
Ford will be adjusting the framework of the provincewide shutdown in order to allow businesses that have been deemed non-essential to re-open.
Limited in-person shopping in Grey-Lockdown zones will be permitted with public health and safety measures, including limiting capacity to 25 per cent in most retail settings.
In addition, public health and safety measures in retail settings will be strengthened for other levels of the framework. Individuals will also be required to wear a face covering and maintain physical distance when indoors in a business, with limited exceptions.
While much of the province will remain under the stay-at-home order for another week, a trio of public health regions will be shifting back to the Green-Prevent level on Wednesday, Feb. 10 and will no longer be subject to the order.
Those regions are, Hastings Prince Edward Public Health, Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington Public Health and Renfrew County and District Health Unit.
Due to the fact that public health trends are improving in some regions faster than others, the current stay-at-home order will be amended and individual orders making it applicable to each public health region will be made except for the three above.
"While we have seen some progress in our fight against COVID-19, the situation in our hospitals remains precarious and the new variants pose a considerable threat to all of us," said health minister Christine Elliott.
"As we cautiously and gradually transition out of the provincewide shutdown, we have developed an emergency brake system giving us the flexibility to contain community spread quickly in a specific region, providing an extra layer of protection."
While the provincewide stay-at-home order will cease to apply in some regions as of Feb. 10, the province is advising that everyone continue to stay at home, avoid social gatherings, minimize travel between areas with different rules, and limit close contacts to their household.
