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WATCH: Ford unveils funding and details for COVID-19 testing, outbreak management

The provincial government is investing money in the province's testing strategy

Update:

The provincial government plans to invest $1.07B in Ontario's COVID-19 testing and case and contact management strategy.

Premier Doug Ford announced today that the government is also investing $30M to prevent and manage outbreaks in long-term care homes, retirement homes and schools.

In a press release issued today, the provincial government stated more testing locations will be available depending on local needs. This includes:

  • Adding more testing locations at pharmacies, as announced earlier this week
  • Adding more testing options including less invasive collection methods, such as throat, nasal swabbing and salia collection
  • More testing capacity, increasing daily testing capacity to 50,000
  • Faster turnaround for testing
  • Investing more than $510 million provided to protect vulnerable populations, including supporting physical distancing and enhanced infection control measures in congregate settings and isolation facilities
  • Distribution of an outbreak guidance toolkit to support each ministry's outbreak management planning, ensuring strong sector responses
  • Stress-testing outbreak response protocols and structures through virtual simulation exercises that have been held across the province to address outbreaks in schools, universities and correctional facilities

More information on the strategy as announced today can be found here.

Original story:

Premier Doug Ford is slated to provide details on the third part of his government's fall COVID-19 preparedness plan at 12:00 p.m. at Queen's Park today.

The plan is expected to cover details related to testing and case and contact management in Ontario.

This comes after the provincial government revealed that up to 60 pharmacies in Ontario will begin offering COVID-19 tests starting Friday, and the launch of the province's largest flu shot campaign in Ontario's history earlier this week.

Ford will be joined by Christine Elliott, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health, Dr. Merrilee Fullerton, Minister of Long-Term Care, and Dr. Barbara Yaffe, Associate Chief Medical Officer of Health, to make the announcement.

Village Media will carry the livestream, so stay tuned.