Ontario Health Minister Christine Elliott outlined for reporters on Friday the expansion the province's COVID-19 testing parameters, in an effort to increase the amount of testing being done in Ontario. Elliot said this would include proactively testing hospital inpatients, long-term care homes, paramedics, police and firefighters, remote, isolated and rural Indigenous communities, and vulnerable people like those undergoing chemotherapy or receiving transplants, as well as those who are pregnant.

Elliott added that anyone exhibiting symptoms "can and will be tested" at the recommendation of family physician or a physician in an assessment centre.

Premier Doug Ford said the changes in procedures in order to ramp up testing procedures does not mean there can be a "rush" on assessment centres for testing. Elliott added the decision of whether someone should get tested for COVID-19 would be up to the physician at the assessment centre. She said if someone shows up without symptoms, the physician would make the determination whether that person should get tested.

Chief medical officer of health Dr. David Williams also said that projections showed the province could see a peak in the number of COVID-19 cases in intensive care by second or third week of April. He said hospitals have been working to prepare for a potential increase in cases by cancelling elective surgeries, ensuring equipment is at the ready, and other procedures to ensure a good response that is safe for health care workers.

Ontario reported 478 new cases of coronavirus Friday morning including 22 deaths, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the province to 6,237.

The death toll rose to 222.

Of the confirmed cases, 673 people are hospitalized with COVID-19, with 260 in intensive care and 217 on a ventilator. Around 12.6 per cent of all cases in Ontario have resulted in hospitalization.

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