Ontario enhances rapid testing strategy, awaits delivery schedule from feds
Posted January 6, 2022 7:58 am.
Last Updated January 6, 2022 11:10 pm.
Ontario is once again updating its testing strategy in the face of the rapidly spreading Omicron variant to rely more heavily on rapid test kits.
The changes to the rapid testing strategy come a day after the federal government promised millions of additional test kits were on the way and will aim to ensure the kits are being prioritized for the highest-risk settings.
The province is now recommending rapid antigen tests for individuals with COVID-19 symptoms. The can also be used for screening purposes in individuals without symptoms.
Anyone who tests positive using a rapid test is no longer required to seek a PCR test for confirmation.
The Ministry of Health says positive tests for a symptomatic person should be treated as a confirmed case and that person and their household would be required to self-isolate. Two negative tests within two days for symptomatic individuals would only require them to isolate until their symptoms start to improve.
People who are fully vaccinated are required to self-isolate for five days following the onset of symptoms. Unvaccinated, partially vaccinated or immunocompromised individuals who test positive are still required to self-isolate for 10 days.
The province is not recommending that rapid tests be used before social events or gatherings due to the risk of false negatives.
The tests are also being recommended for “test-to-work” purposes to meet workforce needs in high-risk settings. This is to help alleviate staffing shortages and would allow individuals to return to work with a negative test when they would otherwise be stuck in self-isolation.
“Right now, given the high community prevalence of COVID-19, testing is a luxury,” Dr. Kieran Moore, the province’s top doctor, told a Thursday news conference.
“The vast majority of Ontarians will be able to stay at home, to take a Tylenol or ibuprofen or fluids to help us get over our symptoms.”
He added that the province is “fortunate” that Omicron appears to result in more mild illness on an individual level, but it’s causing strain on the health system due to the variant’s transmissibility, which is pushing infections up to record levels.
Related: How a Canadian manufacturer of COVID rapid tests is working to meet the crushing demand
On Wednesday, Ottawa confirmed it will distribute 140 million rapid antigen tests across the country in January. The tests will be doled out to provinces and territories on a per capita basis.
The Ford government says it is still awaiting a firm delivery schedule from Ottawa but says it has been promised more than 54 million rapid antigen tests in January.
“We welcome yesterday’s news from the federal government,” reads a statement from Premier Doug Ford’s office. “However in order to finalize distribution plans we need confirmation of delivery schedule.”
So far only 150,000 tests have been allocated to Ontario in January while another nine million have been scheduled for delivery.
The province says it anticipates demand for rapid tests will grow from one million to 18 million per week as changes from PCR testing edibility and the expanded RAT testing strategy take hold.
The Ministry of Health says the province requested more than 68 million tests for the month of January. It is still awaiting confirmation on whether the remaining 14 million it asked for will be delivered.
The 140 million tests from the federal government in January would quadruple the 35 million distributed in December. Ford’s office says Ontario has still “not received 12 of the 15.5 million” tests it was promised last month.
“The federal supply we expect to receive in the coming weeks is in addition to the millions of tests Ontario is procuring on its own,” adds the statement from the government.
The province procured an additional 65 million test kits in December and January.
The province changed its PCR testing guidelines on Dec. 30, announcing that publicly-funded PCR tests will only be available for high-risk residents who are symptomatic or are at risk of severe illness.
Anyone else who is not considered vulnerable and is experiencing mild symptoms of the virus is being asked to not seek testing. Non-vulnerable individuals who test positive using a rapid test will no longer be required to receive confirmation via a PCR test.
There have been multiple reports of people waiting in lines for hours to try to receive the test kits dispensed by the provincial government.
Some medical experts have called for rapid test prioritization for students and teachers with in-person classes set to resume in two weeks.
Premier Ford has said the two-week pause on in-person classes will provide “much-needed time” for vaccines and public health measures to blunt soaring daily case counts, which reached record highs above 18,000 on the first day of the new year.
On Monday, the province also announced it was moving back into a modified Step Two of its COVID-19 Roadmap to Reopen plan. The new restrictions, which went into effect on Wednesday, which will stay in place for at least three weeks, include the closure of gyms and indoor dining and further restrictions on capacity limits at retail stores.
Files from The Canadian Press were used in this report
