“Oh, we’re in the middle,” Dr Peter Juni told CP24 on Tuesday night when asked if he believed the province was in the middle of a new wave.  “When you look at our sewage, it’s very clear.  You can name it whatever you want, you know.  whether it’s a resurgence of the Omicron wave we had or a sixth wave, the point is to really understand that this is not a BA wave. ”
He said the highly contagious Omicron variant could not be blamed for the growing number of cases in Ontario, and said it had much more to do with “paying attention to the wind”.
“The point here really is that it’s our sole responsibility what we see and we just have a little bit ahead of us and here we are,” Juni said.  “And we just have a duty to keep the tilt up relatively flat so that we are not challenged again in our hospitals.”
COVID-19 hospitalizations in Ontario have increased by more than 23 percent compared to a week ago, with 790 patients currently hospitalized.
Juni estimated, based on the levels of viruses measured in the sewage, that Ontario currently sees between 30,000 and 35,000 new infections a day.  The actual number of cases is almost impossible to measure because trials in the province have been significantly reduced.
The Ford government is lifting restrictions on COVID-19 in the province, with almost all of the restrictions set to be lifted in April.
When the government announced its plans several weeks ago, health officials said an increase in cases was expected with each easing of restrictions, but that the province now has the tools it needs, such as vaccines and drugs, to manage the impact of the virus. .
In a statement to CTV News Toronto on Tuesday, the Ontario Department of Health did not say if it saw the province in the middle of a new wave, but said Ontario hospitals were equipped to cope.
“As Dr. Moore said earlier, the indexes are expected to rise as Ontarians interact more and more with each other.  “However, thanks to our high vaccination rates and our natural immunity, as well as the arrival of antiviral drugs, Ontario has the tools to manage the impact of the virus,” the ministry said in a statement.  “The latest modeling shows that our hospitals and health system can manage any of the scenarios without compromising our ability to continue to deal with the outstanding surgery caused by the pandemic.
“The Director of Health will continue to monitor the data and data on an ongoing basis, as he did throughout the pandemic.”
However, Juni warned on Tuesday that the modeling forecast was “just a scenario” based on a modest increase in transmission corresponding to a modest change in behavior.
“It’s not what we see anymore.  “We see more of that, people are less covered and have more contacts,” Juni said.  “Therefore, you can expect that all the numbers will be higher than we predicted in the ceiling.  It will go further in the worst case scenario. “
Several doctors and health officials have said that there should be no urgent need to remove some of the most basic health measures, such as coverage in crowded or high-risk areas.
Johnny said the idea that the mask restrictions would be lifted and never come back “would probably not be played that way.  “We just need to know.”
“If we take off the mask now, for example, at our gatherings, etc., that could be very, very provocative.”
He added that “we must first get it out before removing any other restrictions and we unreservedly recommend to people again: please mask, get vaccinated”.
The epidemiologist Dr.  Raywat Deonandan also spoke to CP24 on Tuesday night, saying the lifting of restrictions should not be linked to arbitrary calendar dates, but to measurable epidemiological indicators.
“I predict, just as night follows day, that rising cases will be followed by increasing hospitalizations and increased deaths, probably less than we had before in the pandemic due to the power of vaccination, but inevitably.”
He said tools such as mask use, vaccinations and symptom controls should be maintained for “as long as possible”.
Dr Allan Grill, head of family medicine at Markham Stouffville Hospital, told CP24 that he was concerned about the increase in cases among his patients, but also about people not seeking treatment for other illnesses because they were trying to avoid the virus.
“The last thing we want to do is have patients who are not seeking care because they are worried about COVID and are worried about leaving their homes and suddenly you have a lot of people with COVID and you also have people who do not manage the other health care needs. “We have to take care of it,” he said.  “So we will continue to do our best with the resources we have.”