Ontario's co-chair of the COVID-19 Science Advisory Table Dr. Adalsteinn Brown said Thursday that the province could see more than 600 patients in ICUs by New Year's if an "immediate" circuit breaker is not implemented and if the Omicron variant is as severe as Delta.
The numbers paint a stark image of how the new variant, which is already the dominant variant in the province, could impact Ontario. Brown also detailed a scenario in which Omicron is 25 per cent less severe than Delta, but even then ICU beds could reach nearly 500 without action taken.
A circuit breaker, Brown said, would include a rapid roll-out of booster doses as well as Ontarians reducing their contacts by about 50 per cent. If this is implemented, it could reduce ICU beds down to about 300 whether the variant is as severe or less so than Delta.
Cases could also reach more than 10,000 by Christmas if a circuit breaker is not implemented, lowering to close to 5,000 at maximum if additional measures are taken.
Ontario reported 2,421 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday. By comparison, the province saw 1,290 new cases last Thursday and 780 the week before. The provincial case total now stands at 639,341.
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