De Villa says COVID-19 has had bigger impact on South Asian, Indo-Caribbean Toronto neighbourhoods
Posted January 21, 2021 4:53 pm.
Last Updated January 21, 2021 5:46 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
City officials say COVID-19 has disproportionately impacted some communities in Toronto more than others and has released the ethnic-racial groups hit hardest by the virus.
On Thursday, Toronto’s top doctor, Eileen de Villa says the latest data from Toronto Public Health (TPH) shows South Asian and Indo-Caribbean people now make up the highest proportion of cases being reported through these groups.
“Twenty-seven percent of cases, while comprising 13 percent of the population,” de Villa said.
“As of November 30, 2020, 79 percent of reported COVID-19 cases were in people who identified as coming from a racialized group.”
TPH started collecting data on Indigenous identity, racial group, income, and household size on May 20, 2020.
Mayor John Tory says the City has implemented targeted equity measures to support neighbourhoods experiencing
higher COVID-19; that includes expanding testing sites and increasing education.
“TCHC has been working hard to support the wide variety of needs of its tenants and their variety of needs,” the mayor said.
“Since April of 2020, to help identify positive cases in TCHC buildings, TCHC, with the help of Toronto Public Health and regional health and social service providers, have conducted five door-to-door COVID-19 testing initiatives.”
Councillor Joe Cressy, chairman of the Toronto Board of Health, joined Tory and de Villa at the Thursday afternoon news conference.
Health providers have been working to improve access to testing in those neighbourhoods.
Cressy says nearly 271 testing clinics have been booked in more than 20 different city-owned facilities, with 89 more dates to come in January at 12 different sites.
De Villa says there are 986 new cases of COVID-19 in the City and 10 more deaths.
With files from The Canadian Press
