The sacrifices Ontarians have made recently have saved thousands from the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic, Premier Doug Ford said Friday, even as he announced more stringent measures in a bid to avert what new projections suggest could be a dire outcome.
Moments after public health officials spelled out the prospective toll the novel coronavirus could take on the province’s population, including thousands of potential deaths, Ford moved to shutter an even larger swath of the Ontario economy.
The move was among the recommendations made by a group of high-ranking doctors, who said failure to adopt stricter public health measures could lead to an estimated 1,600 fatalities by the end of April and as many as 15,000 over the full course of the outbreak.
Ford said the decision to drastically pare down the list of essential services allowed to operate was difficult but necessary in light of the data showing the effectiveness of physical distancing in curbing the spread of COVID-19.
“The numbers clearly show that we collectively have saved thousands of lives,” Ford said. “But we also know that we can’t stop now.”
[Unbelievable]
See Also:
(2) No masking Ford’s feelings on U.S. blocking export of N95s
(3) Ontario’s death toll from COVID-19 closes in on 100
