Ontario reports 287 new COVID-19 cases and 12 more deaths on Sunday

Ontario is reporting 287 cases of COVID-19 and 12 more deaths on Sunday.

Health Minister Christine Elliott said the dailycase countincludes 66in Waterloo region, 42 in Toronto, 38 in Grey Bruce, 26 in Peel region and 16 in the Porcupine Health Unit region.

The province's network of labscompleted more than 18,500 tests in the last 24 hours, she added.

As of 8p.m. yesterday, 14,027,141 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine had been administered in Ontario, including 202,672 doses administered on Saturday.

There are currently 203 people with COVID-19 in Ontario hospitals.There are also 289 people in intensive care units, of which 191 people, or 66 per cent, are breathing with the help ofventilators.

The new deaths on Sunday bringthe province's cumulative deathtollto9,126.

Province prepares to move to second step of reopening plan

Ontario is preparing to move to Step Two of its reopening plan on June 30. The new rules will allow for outdoor gatherings of up to 25 people andindoor gatherings of up to five people, among other things.

The government said it had met its goals for moving to the second step.These goals includehaving 70 per cent of adults vaccinated with one dose and 20 per cent vaccinated with two doses for at least two weeks.

As of Sunday,77per cent of the population over18 has receivedone dosewhileabout 34 per cent hasreceived their second dose.

The Ontario government has provided a list of activities that will be allowed when the second step begins:

• Outdoor social gatherings and organized public events with up to 25 people.
• Indoor social gatherings and organized public events with up to 5 people.
• Essential and other select retail permitted at 50 per cent capacity.
• Non-essential retail permitted at 25 per cent capacity.
• Personal care services where face coverings can be worn at all times, and at 25 per cent capacity and other restrictions.
• Outdoor dining with up to sixpeople per table, with anexceptionfor larger households and other restrictions.
• Indoor religious services, ritesor ceremonies, including wedding services and funeral services, will be permitted at up to 25 per cent capacity of a particular room.
• Outdoor fitness classes will be limited to the number of people who can maintain threemetres of physical distance.
• Outdoor sports without contact or modified to avoid contact,with no specified limit on number of people or teams participating, with restrictions.
• Overnight camps for children operating in a manner consistent with the safety guidelines produced by the Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Health.
• Outdoor sport facilities with spectators permitted at 25 per cent capacity.
• Outdoor concert venues, theatres and cinemas, with spectators permitted at 25 per cent capacity.
• Outdoor horse racing and motor speedways, with spectators permitted at 25 per cent capacity.
• Outdoor fairs, rural exhibitions, festivals, permitted at 25 per cent capacity and with other restrictions.

The rules come into effect at 12:01 a.m. on June 30.

Ontario said in the statement that "while the province has surpassed Step Three vaccination targets," the province will stay in Step Two for 21 days to allow vaccinations to reach their full effectiveness and the government to evaluate the impact oflooser restrictions.

Toronto sets vaccination record

Meanwhile, the City of Toronto administered nearly 27,000 COVID-19 vaccines at a single clinic on Sunday, which it says smashes past the previous North American record.

Mayor John Tory was among the 26,771 people who received a vaccine at the "Our Winning Shot" event at the Scotiabank Arena, home of the Toronto Raptors and Toronto Maple Leafs.

The City says it broke the previous record at about 8 p.m., when 17,004 doses had been administered.

Texas held that record with 17,003 shots administered at a drive-thru clinic on April 30.

Toronto has administered more than 3.2 million vaccine doses since the start of the immunization campaign.

Accelerated second doses available to youth in hot spots

Ontario youth between the ages of 12 to 17 who live in designated hot spots for the Delta COVID-19 variantcan now book accelerated second vaccine dose appointments.