Provincial officials presented new COVID-19 modelling data today, a few hours before new Ontario restrictions are expected to be announced.
While we don't know exactly what will be said, officials showed a chart at a press conference today examining other countries' responses to COVID-19 to see what the province can do to flatten our curve.
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Australia has been one of the few countries that could be considered a COVID-19 success story, and the chart shows why.
The state of Victoria, Australia, introduced a large number of measures, which included closing schools, shutting most workplaces, mandating masks outdoors, and closing bars and restaurants.
The United Kingdom and Germany are currently in lockdown, but they're not following all of the measures listed.
Ontario is following most of them: there are strict stay-at-home orders; non-essential businesses are closed; some schools in the province are closed; there have been testing blitzes across the province and in schools; and Ontario is enforcing its current measures.
However, like the UK, Ontario does not have a curfew or mandatory outdoor masking.
In addition, Ontario health officials said that any plan with heightened restrictions would not work unless it also included social supports like an eviction moratorium and paid sick leave.