The Niagara Region will be under strengthened health measures as it moves up to the yellow “Protect” tier of the Ontario government’s new COVID-19 response system.
The new colour-coded classification system introduced this week outlines how the province will deploy lockdowns, restrictions and closures in regions across the province. It classifies each of the province’s 34 public health units into one of five categories based on their current COVID-19 trends.
Niagara Region was originally placed in the green “Prevent” tier based on data from the week of Oct. 26, but it has been moved up a tier to yellow or the Protect tier based on the data from this week.
A health unit is moved into the yellow Protect tier when its weekly incidence rate is 10 to 39.9 per 100,000 people. It is characterized by: “Enhanced targeted enforcement, fines, and enhanced education to limit further transmission. Public health measures for high-risk settings.”
The biggest changes in the yellow tier are as follows:
- Restaurants, bars, and meeting and event spaces have to close at midnight, and only six people can be seated together.
- All liquor sales are limited to between 9 a.m. and 11 p.m.
- Contact information is required for most places people visit with the exception of retail.
- Music can’t be louder than a normal conversation.
- For sport facilities, the proposed measures for yellow are three metres of space between participants for weight machines and exercise classes.
- Sport and gym programs can only have 10 people per room indoors and 25 outdoors. Appointments and reservations are required. However, masks do not need to be worn during exercise.
- Gathering sizes are 10 people indoors and 25 outdoors for private gatherings.
- Staffed businesses are allowed 50 people indoors and 100 outdoors
- Religious services remain at 30 per cent capacity.
Other regions that have been moved up to the yellow tier include Haldimand-Norfolk, Waterloo, Simcoe-Muskoka, Eastern Ontario Health Unit, and Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health.
The Peel Region has also moved up to the red, “Control” tier meaning that it will remain in modified Stage Two. The Toronto Public Health region will also remain under modified Stage Two until Nov. 14.
Effective tomorrow, Nov. 7 at 12:01 a.m., here are the tiers allocated to each of Ontario’s public health units:
Lockdown:
- No public health unit regions.
Red-Control:
- Peel Regional Health Unit.
Orange-Restrict:
- Ottawa Public Health
- York Region Public Health.
Yellow-Protect:
- Brant County Health Unit
- City of Hamilton Public Health Services
- Durham Region Health Department
- Eastern Ontario Health Unit
- Haldimand-Norfolk Health Unit
- Halton Region Public Health
- Niagara Region Public Health
- Region of Waterloo Public Health and Emergency Services
- Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit
- Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health.
Green-Prevent:
- Algoma Public Health
- Chatham-Kent Public Health
- Grey Bruce Health Unit
- Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington Public Health
- Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit
- Hastings Prince Edward Public Health
- Huron Perth Public Health
- Lambton Public Health
- Leeds, Grenville & Lanark District Health Unit
- Middlesex-London Health Unit
- North Bay Parry Sound District
- Northwestern Health Unit
- Peterborough Public Health
- Porcupine Health Unit
- Public Health Sudbury & Districts
- Renfrew County and District Health Unit
- Southwestern Public Health
- Thunder Bay District Health Unit
- Timiskaming Health Unit
- Windsor-Essex County Health Unit.