COVID-19: Here's the situation in the Sault this week

New cases in the province ranged from a low of 244 to a high of 355 this week.

In light of that, Premier Doug Ford announced the province will move into Step 2 of its Roadmap to Reopen on June 30 instead of July 2.

This allows for a further lifting of restrictions, most notably on personal care services and limits on outdoor and indoor gatherings.

Ontario will stay in Step 2 for approximately 21 days. 

Both outgoing Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Williams and his replacement Dr. Kieran Moore have cautioned against moving too fast to reopen.

As case numbers continue to dwindle in Canada, chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam says she'll soon have advice to help fully vaccinated Canadians figure out what they can safely do, but it won't be a blanket list of dos and don'ts covering everyone, everywhere.

Instead, Canada is looking at a "risk assessment tool" that will guide Canadians to make a call on their own whether they are safe and comfortable to take off their masks and throw physical distancing to the wind.

Here's the latest on new cases in Algoma

As of 2:45 p.m., Algoma Public Health has not reported any new cases of COVID-19.

Two new cases were reported in the region over the last week, one Friday and one Tuesday.

The health unit also confirmed an outbreak at Sugar Zone Mine in White River, where three employees tested positive for the virus.

Here are the latest COVID-19 numbers from Algoma Public Health, updated at 2:15 p.m.:

• 152,078 tested
• 400 confirmed 
• 2 active cases
• 0 currently hospitalized
• 398 resolved
• 6 deceased
• 110 cases screened positive for variants of concern

Algoma Public Health is reporting that recent results from additional laboratory testing have detected the following variants of concern in Algoma:

• B.1.1.7 (Alpha), first detected in the UK
• B.1.617.2 (Delta), first detected in India
• P.1 (Gamma), first detected in Brazil

According to data on howsmyflattening.ca, a University of Toronto-led website which collects and analyzes data from Ontario's COVID-19 cases, 48 per cent of ICU beds in Algoma Public Health's jurisdiction are currently occupied, one of which is a COVID patient.

The data also describes the community risk level for COVID-19 in our region as 'very low.'

Total confirmed cases by area of residence: 

• 313 in Sault Ste. Marie and area
• 51 in central and east Algoma
• 31 in Elliot Lake and area
• 5 in north Algoma

Comparatively, in Chippewa County, which covers Sault Ste. Marie Mich. and surrounding area, the COVID-19 data as of Wednesday states:

• 2,509 cumulative positives
• 2,442 cumulative recovered
• 34 deaths
• 0 cases currently hospitalized

Here's the latest on COVID-19 vaccinations in Algoma:

 As of 10:15 a.m. yesterday:

• 100,790 total doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered
• 52,866 people have received their first dose only (55.5 per cent of youth 12-17 have received at least one dose and 77.1 per cent of the adult population (18+) have received at least one dose)
• 23,962 people are fully vaccinated (25.1 per cent of eligible population)
• 76,828 people have received at least one dose (67.1 per cent of the population or 75.7 per cent of the eligible population)

More than 75 per cent of Algoma's population over the age of 18 has received at least the first COVID-19 vaccination dose, a release issued this week by APH reports. Algoma joined the rest of the province on Monday to accelerated second-dose booking for those who had their first shots May 9 or earlier.

As a result of high vaccine rates and low COVID cases in the region, two Sault Ste. Marie councillors are pushing for much quicker relief for gyms and personal service establishments. Ward 3 Coun. Donna Hilsinger announced on social media that she and Ward 5 Coun. Matthew Scott will introduce a resolution at the next City Council meeting on June 28 on the matter.

APH battling COVID and worsening opioid crisis at once

While more people in the Sault and Algoma district are receiving vaccinations to alleviate their fears of COVID-19, the region’s opioid crisis continues.

“I would say that a pandemic and a mental health and addictions crisis do not go well together at all,” said Dr. Jennifer Loo, Algoma Public Health (APH) medical officer of health and CEO, addressing APH board of health members at their monthly meeting, held virtually Wednesday.

“Recent reports from Public Health Ontario have indicated that across the province opioid-related mortality has increased tremendously during the course of the pandemic.”

“That has been the case in Algoma. In fact we are among the top four public health units with the highest rates of opioid-related mortality during the pandemic and many of these are northern Ontario health units,” Loo said.

Loo noted healthcare workers are being stretched in their efforts to address both the opioid crisis and COVID-19.

Local school boards staying with quadmester system for now

Sault and area high school students won’t be returning to a traditional, pre-COVID semester system in September.

There is a possibility that as COVID-19 vaccinations continue, ADSB teens could return to a regular semester in 2022.

Both ADSB and H-SCDSB have said the earliest return to regular semesters would be in February.

Fireworks, outdoor events cancelled on Canada Day

The City of Sault Ste. Marie confirms that there will be no Canada Day events held by the municipality this year. 

Chief administrative officer Malcolm White says the usual events, consisting of outdoor activities and entertainment – and the fireworks show that draws people to the waterfront – doesn’t jive with current COVID-related restrictions in place across Ontario.  

Michigan lifts COVID-19 restrictions

Michigan lifted all of its COVID-19 restrictions on Tuesday, allowing for both indoor and outdoor settings to return to 100 per cent capacity, and the lifting of mask requirements.

However, individual businesses are permitted to require masks. Additionally, some public health measures, such as required COVID-19 reporting and testing, will remain in place in an effort to "'protect vulnerable populations in corrections, long-term care and agriculture," according to a press release from Governor Gretchen Whitmer's office.

Border quarantine to soon lift for fully vaccinated Canadians

 Fully vaccinated Canadians returning to Canada will soon be able to avoid a mandatory quarantine as long as they still test negative for COVID-19. 

Air travellers who have been fully vaccinated for at least two weeks won't have to spend any time at a quarantine hotel, and neither air nor land travellers who are fully vaccinated will have to quarantine at home at all as long as they test negative before and after arrival.

For now the new rules only recognize the four vaccines Canada has authorized, and will not apply to most foreign nationals.

Meanwhile Liberal Northwestern Ontario MP Marcus Powlowski says he wishes the government had done something similar for American visitors, noting the impact on tourist operators near border towns in particular.

Canada's health minister says she has yet to speak with her American counterparts about whether or not their country will recognize those who got one or two doses of AstraZeneca as being fully vaccinated.

Feds embark on $33M shop local campaign

The federal government is spending $33 million across the country to get Canadians to shop at small, local businesses to aid in their recovery from the impact of COVID-19.

Announced on Monday, the funding will be parcelled out to provincial and territorial chambers of commerce to use for things like shop-local branding and digital content, seasonal campaigns intended to direct shoppers to local small merchants, promotion of online shopping, marketing materials, etc.

Ontario's share of the funds is $8.8 million.

Feds renew Indigenous Community Business Fund

The federal government has renewed a fund that helps Indigenous businesses stay afloat while recovering from the pandemic.

Launched last year in direct response to the impacts of COVID-19 on businesses, the Indigenous Community Business Fund (ICBF) provides capital to Indigenous microbusinesses and community- or collectively owned businesses that don't qualify for other business supports.

An additional $117 million for the initiative was re-announced by the federal government on June 16.

Meanwhile, a new national survey shows that, despite resilience and optimism, many Indigenous-owned businesses were among the hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

These entrepreneurs continue to struggle with declining revenues, closures, and employee layoffs.

Local organizations receive $271,365 in pandemic relief funding

Local organizations are getting a $271,365 boost in COVID-19 relief funding from the Canadian government, Sault Ste. Marie MP Terry Sheehan announced in a press release on Thursday.

This funding is in addition to the $306,000 announced in the fall, bringing the total amount to $577,365 through the Emergency Community Support Fund (ECSF). 

Loplops goes digital to bring craft beer to Saultites

The Sault Ste. Marie Festival of Beer isn’t happening again this year, but that isn’t stopping Loplops owner Stephen Alexander from bringing unique craft beers to town. 

He recently introduced the Loplop Bottle Shop, an online shopping experience that boasts about 150 types of Ontario craft beer not available locally until now.  

Read more from SooToday's James Hopkin here.

Vaccine deliveries enough to fully vaccinate all eligible Canadians by the end of July

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's promise of a two-dose fall is looking a lot more like it will become a two-dose August.

Trudeau says Canada is on track now to have 68 million doses delivered by the end of July, which is more than enough to fully vaccinate all 33.2 million Canadians over the age of 12. 

Previously Canada expected enough to fully vaccinate 75 per cent of all eligible people before August, but Moderna has now scheduled another 11 million doses to be delivered in late June and early July.

Three in four eligible Canadians now have their first dose, and just under one in five are now fully vaccinated.

Dr. David Williams defends his record during pandemic

On the eve of his retirement as Ontario's top doctor, David Williams says the effort to control the COVID-19 pandemic has gone better than he had expected.

He retires on Friday from the post of chief medical officer of health, several months after his five-year appointment in February 2016 was scheduled to expire.

Williams will be succeeded by Dr. Kieran Moore, currently the medical officer of health for the Kingston area.

During the pandemic, some critics have faulted him for his communication style, and for not pushing the government to impose stronger restrictions in advance of an upsurge in COVID cases earlier this year.

The head of the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario was particularly harsh, charging that Williams lacked foresight at the outset, and appeared incapable of standing up to Ford.

As part of her critique of the provincial government's handling of the crisis last November, Auditor-General Bonnie Lysyk also suggested Williams had not led the response.  

Williams defended the job he's done, saying some people don't understand the challenges the pandemic presented for Ontario.

"These are uncharted waters. There's no road map. When you try to compare Ontario to any other province, you can't do the comparison," he said.

Grads celebrated virtually

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, graduates at all levels of education in the Sault and the rest of Ontario have been robbed, for the second year in a row, of the enjoyment of participating in traditional, in person graduation ceremonies, with plans for virtual ceremonies in place instead.

Notwithstanding, SooToday spoke with two 2021 Sault College graduates who shared their stories with us after the second consecutive pandemic-affected academic year.

Read more about their stories here.

Sault College is also showcasing grads on its convocation website here.

At Korah Collegiate, Denine Williams, head of the arts department at Korah Collegiate, sent a musical video to Sootoday dedicated to students who graduated despite a difficult year of on and offline learning amid the pandemic.

Restaurateurs grapple with rising food costs, menu prices expected to rise

High shipping rates, delays and increases in grain costs have sent food prices soaring for restaurants already hurt by pandemic restrictions and closures.

Restaurants Canada's James Rilett said restaurants are a low margin industry, so there's not a lot of room to work in additional costs.

A survey by Restaurants Canada found food costs are one of the top three challenges restaurants are facing along with additional shutdowns and pandemic-related debt.

Rilett, Central Canada vice-president at Restaurants Canada, said while most restaurant owners will try to delay menu increases for as long as possible, he expects customers will face higher prices.