EASTERN ONTARIO HEALTH UNIT MOVES TO ORANGE ZONE STATUS

The Ontario government has moved twenty-seven (27) public health regions out of the “shutdown” status and into “revised and strengthened” status; one of the 27 being the Eastern Ontario Health Unit (EOHU), of which the City of Cornwall and Akwesasne fall under. The order is effective as of February 16, 2021. 

The decision to move EOHU into the Orange Zone Status was based on public health trends, such as lowering transmission rates of COVID-19, improving hospital capacity, and available public health capacity to conduct rapid case and contact management across Ontario. 

EOHU will stay within the Orange Zone Status for two weeks at a time, during which the government will assess the impact on public health and workplace safety mea-sures. After a two-week assessment period, the decision will be made if the EOHU needs to be moved to another zone level. 

Under the Orange Zone Status, indoor engagements are limited to 10 people indoor, 25 people outdoor. 

Restaurants, gyms, retail establishments, and other facilities, etc. will be open, with strict limits in place, such as wearing masks/PPE, maximum capacity occupancy, time limits, and ensuring social distancing is maintained. 

With the zone status change, MCA’s Department of Health would like to remind the community to remain diligent to public health and safety measures when out in public: wear your mask, wash/sanitize your hands frequently, and practice so-cial distancing. Community should also be reminded that the zone status can change after a two-week public health assessment. 

For the full article, and links to Ontario’s full COVID-19 Response Framework, please visit Eastern Ontario Health Unit’s Public Health website: www.eohu.ca.