Emergency Orders Extended Until July 22nd

Thursday, 9 July 2020 at 10:28

The extension was made to make sure the Province keeps the flexibility that's needed to keep the public safe as more businesses reopen and people go back to work.

ONTARIO - The provincial government has extended all emergency orders currently in force that were made under s.7.0.2(4) of the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act to July 22nd.

The Province's decision comes after consulting with Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health.

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 frontline staff in long-term care facilities, retirement homes and other congregate care settings to be redeployed, like women's shelters and residential services. The extension would allow public health units to redeploy or hire staff to support case management and contact tracing.

Premier Doug Ford says the Province is allowing people to return to their jobs as well as protect the public's health.

"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. 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 safely 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 here.