Premier Doug Ford has ordered that long-term care workers no longer work at multiple locations as the number of confirmed COVID-19 outbreaks in the sector stands at 114, or 14 per cent of all the facilities in Ontario.
The novel coronavirus has spread to the long-term care homes despite hundreds of millions of dollars in new funding for the sector announced last month, and Health Minister Christine Elliott’s promise to erect an “iron ring” around long-term care homes.
“I’m issuing this order today as it is possible because we have the staffing resources in place,” Ford said.
The province said that as of Monday evening, 135 long-term care residents had died of COVID-19.
He added that because hospitals have not seen the surge of admissions due to COVID-19 that they expected this week, unspecified staff would be ordered to move to long-term care homes experiencing outbreaks.
“I want available resources from our health system to go to these long-term care homes where there are outbreaks.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Ontario Finance Minister Rod Phillips said there are talks ongoing to ensure anyone who loses money due to the fact they can only work at one long-term care home at a time is given compensation.
Toronto's long-term care homes banned the practice of staff working at multiple sites last week.
Both Ford and Elliott said the province could simply not find the number of additional qualified staff necessary to enact this measure any time sooner.
Many of the 135 deaths sustained to date occurred in the homes, with the residents not treated in hospital.
Elliott said that there is no standing order not to transport long-term care residents to hospital, despite criticism from the families of some who have died.
“Rest assured if people need to be in hospital due to covid-19 from a long-term care home, they will be taken to hospital,” she said.
