The Ontario government has extended school closures.
The announcement was made this afternoon and includes extending the in-person learning closures until January 25th in Southern Ontario and another 14 days in Northern Ontario to align with the rest of the province.
Premier Doug Ford says we have to get the numbers down and today’s measures will help us continue to stop the spread of this deadly virus.
Ford says they will continue to provide financial relief for parents through the Support for Learners program as well as electricity rate relief for all time-of-use customers.
Provincial numbers show the positivity rate among school-aged children has increased sharply. The rate for kids aged 12-13 years old increased from 5.44 per cent in late November/early December to nearly 20 per cent in early January.
In the nearly two weeks since Ontario was moved into a Provincewide Shutdown, trends in key public health indicators have continued to worsen in both Northern and Southern Ontario, including concerning trends in health system capacity, most notably in hospitals.
The impacts of these time-limited measures throughout the province will be evaluated after 14 days to determine if it is safe to lift any restrictions or if they need to be extended.