
Ontario Strengthens Enforcement of Stay-at-Home Order
New Provincial restrictions in effect as of April 17, 2021 at 12:01 a.m.
Vaccine, symptoms and testing
- COVID-19 vaccine information and appointment booking
- Frequently asked questions about COVID-19 vaccination
- High Risk Contact information
- Symptoms of COVID-19
- Where to get tested for COVID-19 in Ottawa
- Access COVID-19 test results
- Self-isolation instructions for COVID-19
- Ottawa Voluntary Isolation Centre
Staying safe, support and resources
- Employment and social services, housing services, financial assistance
- Frequently asked questions
- Be Social Wise - Guidance for social gatherings during COVID-19
- Masks
- Physical distancing
- Multilingual resources for diverse communities
- Resources for First Nations, Inuit and Métis community members
- Mental health and COVID-19
- Sports, recreation and being active during COVID-19
- Older adults and COVID-19
- Resources for those pregnant and parenting
- COVID-19 resources in american sign language
Schools, workplaces and professionals
- Information for parents of children exposed to COVID-19 in school or child-care
- Supporting schools
- Supporting child care and early years
- Businesses and workplaces
- COVID-19 information for community partners and service providers
- COVID-19 information for long-term care and retirement homes settings
- COVID-19 information for physicians and health care professionals
- COVID-19 screening tool for school and child care
- COVID-19 screening tool for workplaces/post-secondary institutions
Last revised on April 19, 2021
The current status of COVID-19 in Ottawa
Ontario Enacts Provincial Emergency and Stay-at-Home Order
Effective Thursday, April 8, 2021 at 12:01 a.m., the government is issuing a province-wide Stay-at-Home order requiring everyone to remain at home except for essential purposes, such as going to the grocery store or pharmacy, accessing health care services (including getting vaccinated), for outdoor exercise , or for work that cannot be done remotely. Read the press release.
Ontario Implements Provincewide Emergency Brake
The provincewide emergency brake came into effect on Saturday, April 3, 2021, at 12:01 a.m. and the government intends to keep this in place for at least four weeks.
Travel outside of Ottawa (whether within Ontario or to another province) should be limited to essential purposes. (Note: the Public Health Agency of Canada advises avoiding all non-essential travel outside of Canada).
If you have to travel outside of Ottawa for work or other essential reasons, here is some information to consider:
- Monitor for symptoms of COVID-19 and do not travel if you are sick.
- If anyone in your household develops symptoms of COVID-19, that person needs to stay home, self-isolate and get tested. All other household (the people you live with) members will also need to isolate until that individual has tested negative for COVID-19.
- Do not carpool with people from outside of your household.
- Wear a mask, practice hand hygiene and maintain at least two metres of physical distance from those outside of your household
- Do not eat, drink, or take breaks with people from outside your household.
- You may have to self-isolate upon your arrival and return depending on where you have traveled. The Chief Medical Officer of Health of Ontario strongly advises that individuals and families self-isolate for 14 days when arriving in or returning to Ontario. This advice for self-isolation would not apply to those whose home is in Quebec and work in Ottawa and vice versa. (Note: arrival and return to Canada from another country continues to require two weeks of isolation as per the Quarantine Act).
For more information on the current situation in Ottawa visit our Statistics page which includes the following:
- Daily COVID-19 dashboard
- Wastewater COVID-19 surveillance
- Supplemental reports
- Mapping products
- Societal impacts
- Projections
Remember to be COVID Wise:
- W – Wear a mask or face covering where required, or when you cannot maintain a physical distance of two metres (six feet).
- I – Isolate yourself from others when you are sick (and get tested immediately if you have COVID-like symptoms).
- S – Stay two metres (six feet) apart from those outside your household or your chosen social support person(s).
- E – Exercise proper hand hygiene; wash your hands regularly or use sanitizer especially before touching your face.
Download our fact sheet on what you need to know about COVID-19.
Stay up to date on the latest COVID-19 developments by following Ottawa Public Health on Twitter and Facebook.
What is the situation in the municipalities surrounding the Ottawa area?
For more information on the situation in your municipality, please visit your local public health unit’s website:
- Eastern Ontario Public Health Unit (Alexandria, Casselman, Cornwall, Hawkesbury, Rockland and Winchester)
- Renfrew County and District Health Unit (Pembroke and Renfrew)
- Leeds Grenville & Lanark District Health Unit (Almonte, Brockville, Carleton Place, Gananoque, Kemptville, Perth and Smiths Falls)
- City of Gatineau
Status of COVID-19 in Ontario
To learn about COVID-19 cases in Ontario and how the province is keeping its people safe please visit COVID-19 Ontario webpage.
On November 3, Ontario released a COVID-19 response framework to help keep the province safe and open. The province will return to this COVID-19 response framework after the provincewide shutdown ends.
Ontario provides a more detailed summary of COVID-19 cases in the province that is updated each day at 10:30 am and posted on its COVID-19 web page.
Status of COVID-19 in Canada
For more information on the federal response, please visit the Government of Canada COVID-19 webpage.
An official global travel advisory to avoid all non-essential travel outside of Canada is in effect until further notice. In addition, a pandemic COVID-19 travel health notice with travel health advice for Canadians has also been issued.
Some regional travel restrictions may be in place within Canada, please check with the region before travelling.
Read the special statements from officials
April 19, 2021 – Joint Special Statement from Dr. Vera Etches and Anthony Di Monte, General Manager, Emergency and Protective Services Department |
Ottawa Public Health (OPH) and the City of Ottawa are working to ensure that all Ottawa residents who want to receive the COVID-19 vaccine will be able to access it as quickly and efficiently as possible. All essential workers of any age who want to be vaccinated against COVID-19 are anticipated to be vaccinated with their first dose by the end of June 2021, sooner if supplies of vaccine increase. In December 2020, the Province of Ontario released its Ethical framework for COVID-19 vaccine distribution. This framework aligns with guidance from the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) and Health Canada, which is evidence-informed and helps guide planning for the efficient, effective and equitable allocation of COVID-19 vaccines in the context of limited vaccine supply. The provincial ethical framework is based on the principals of stewardship, trust, equity and transparency. It evaluates the patient population risk of exposure, the risk of severe disease or outcomes and health system capacity to ensure ongoing care to the population. As vaccine supply continues to be limited, OPH and the City of Ottawa have been and will continue to follow the provincial ethical framework and the Province’s three-phased vaccine distribution plan. While significant progress has been made in vaccinating Phase 1 populations, not all individuals who are eligible to be vaccinated in Phase 1 have received their first dose. Notwithstanding that vaccination of some Phase 1 populations is ongoing, on April 6, 2021 the Government of Ontario announced that it was moving to Phase 2 of its COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Plan, which places primary and initial priority on:
The sequencing of populations in the provincial Phase 2 plan supports OPH’s goal of reducing the risk for people who are more severely impacted by COVID-19 in Ottawa. In four neighbourhoods with some of the highest rates of COVID-19, where many essential workers live, people over 50 are now eligible for vaccine through the provincial booking system. In other priority neighbourhoods, people over 50 are eligible through OPH’s pop-up clinic process. Ottawa’s vaccination program for the general population started with a postal code-based approach to protect people over 80 in priority neighbourhoods. High priority neighbourhoods are defined as those that are most impacted by COVID-19 based on rates of COVID-19 and Ottawa Neighbourhood Study (ONS) data on disadvantaged communities. In addition, the City and OPH are reviewing communities in other neighbourhoods who are also disproportionally impacted by COVID-19 and considerations will be made for these communities as the vaccine roll out continues. The City’s Emergency Operations Centre is now overseeing multiple initiatives to reach workers and residents 50 and above in high priority neighbourhoods in line with the Phase 2 priority. Ottawa’s strategy to make vaccine more accessible in lower income and racialized communities is leading to greater equity in who is being vaccinated. As vaccine supply allows, the eligible age in neighbourhoods at higher risk may be lowered by the province. Vaccine continues to be prioritized for all adults 55, and over via pharmacies and primary care, changing to 40 and over as of April 20th, and 60 and over in mass vaccination clinics as the majority of hospitalizations, ICU admissions and deaths, continue to be of people over 50 years of age. At this point, 60% of people in their 60s remain to be vaccinated, and 75% of people in their 50s have not yet been immunized. Preventing each hospitalization possible is important as hospitals are already pressed to provide intensive care for current and projected COVID-19 patients. Vaccine supply should protect all people in their 60s who want to be vaccinated near the end of April and most people in their 50s by mid-May, allowing a shift to greater allocations to workers of younger ages who cannot work from home. Individuals with the highest risk health conditions (organ transplant recipients, some cancer patients, renal disease patients and people with neurologic diseases in which respiratory function may be compromised) are now also eligible to pre-register for vaccination. These individuals will be provided with booking information through their hospital programs as appointments become available. Vaccinating this population could take weeks, depending on sequencing and vaccine availability. People who live and work in congregate settings, and some associated caregivers, are being reached with COVID-19 vaccine through dedicated initiatives, starting with higher risk settings. Further, during an April 7, 2021 press conference, the Premier of Ontario announced that, the Province would be moving to open vaccination bookings to workers who support students with special education needs, beginning the week of April 12th, 2021. OPH and the City of Ottawa began vaccinating Ottawa’s special education workers that week, based on a list of eligible workers compiled with the assistance of Ottawa school boards. When all reasonable efforts have been made to offer a first dose of vaccine to all those within the Primary Priority groups in Phase 2, the Secondary Priority groups will begin, possibly mid-May. The Second Priority of any-aged essential workers who cannot work from home, will start with education and childcare workers, food manufacturing workers and workers who respond to critical events, among others. We are grateful for the critical work done by people who cannot work from home. We are encouraging essential workers to access vaccine as it first becomes available to them, such as by age or neighbourhood. “Workers who cannot work from home” is a broad category that includes many priority groups whose members may be eligible to be vaccinated based on age or other factors before the Second Priority part of Phase 2 begins. Because vaccines will not be available for even the first group of essential workers all at once, the Ottawa Vaccine Sequencing Task Force will be considering how further prioritization may be achieved within the Secondary Priority group. Following the principle of equity, the local Sequencing Task Force will be asked to consider how best to prioritize special education workers in childcare settings. Residents who are not yet eligible are encouraged to sign up for the COVID-19 vaccine update e-subscription to receive email updates on the vaccine roll-out. If they are not online, they are encouraged to ask a family member, neighbour or friend to sign up and let them know when they are eligible for the vaccine. OPH and the City of Ottawa will continue broad communications plans to provide more information as it becomes available. We continue to ramp up our vaccination efforts as we receive additional vaccine supply and encourage residents to keep visiting OttawaPublicHealth.ca/COVID19vaccine or the City of Ottawa website for the latest information on this ever-evolving situation. Residents can also visit OPH’s COVID-19 Vaccination Dashboard for up-to-date data on COVID-19 vaccinations in Ottawa. The dashboard is updated at 12:30 p.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. In the context of limited vaccine supply and higher levels of COVID-19 transmission across the City of Ottawa, we will continue to focus our efforts on vaccinating individuals who are most at risk of serious illness and death due to COVID-19. |
Contact Information
Provincial Vaccine Information Line
- 7 days a week, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
- Call if you have questions about Ontario's COVID-19 vaccination program.
- Service is available in multiple languages.
- Telephone: 1-888-999-6488
- TTY: 1-866-797-0007
Ottawa Public Health COVID-19 Telephone Line
- Monday to Friday, from 7:30 am to 6:00 pm
- Weekends, from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm
- Translation is available in multiple languages
- Telephone: 613-580-6744 follow the prompts to the COVID-19 telephone line
- TTY: 613-580-9656
Emergency Services
- If you are in distress (e.g., significant trouble breathing, chest pain, fainting, or have a significant worsening of any chronic disease symptoms), do not go to the Assessment Centre or a COVID-19 Care clinic. Go to the nearest Emergency Department or call 9-1-1.
See someone not respecting COVID-19 rules?
- Learn more about COVID-19 rules.
- Telephone: 3-1-1
How to access help during COVID-19
- 211 Ontario can help you find financial and social support during COVID-19
- Telephone: 2-1-1
Related Information
Other Languages
Automated translation by Google
akhbaar somali kuqoran
المعلومات المكتوبة باللغة العربية
简体中文资料
Contact Us