| New as of March 21 Ontario Urges Business to Join the Fight Against COVID-19 New Government Website Removes Barriers for Companies to Provide Essential Goods and Services The Ontario Government is launching Ontario Together, a new website that will help businesses and their employees work with the province to meet the challenges of COVID-19. This initiative will remove barriers allowing Ontario’s manufacturing sector to redeploy capacity towards the production of essential equipment like ventilators, masks and swabs. Ontario Together will identify the province’s supply challenges and solicit ideas and advice from Ontario’s business and manufacturing communities on how the government can work together to meet the need. Through the portal, companies will be able to submit proposals for the government to procure required goods and services and share creative solutions quickly. Through the Ontario Together website, the government will be partnering with some of the most innovative people across Canada and around the world, in order to redirect resources and explore new ways of doing business creatively and efficiently. Prime Minister announces efforts to bring Canadians home from abroad The Government of Canada’s top priority is the safety and security of Canadians. As the global COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve rapidly, we are taking action to limit the spread of the virus and provide support to Canadians at home and abroad. The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today announced new measures by the Government of Canada to help bring Canadians home from abroad. All over the world, COVID-19 has caused sudden border restrictions and flight cancellations, leaving Canadians stranded outside of the country without a way home. Under these extraordinary circumstances, the Government of Canada is working with Canadian airlines and foreign governments to provide access to commercial flights for Canadian travellers who want to return home. The flights will prioritize stranded travellers who are Canadian citizens, Canadian permanent residents, or immediate family members of Canadian citizens. In addition, only travellers who are asymptomatic will be allowed to board, and all travellers will be asked to self-isolate for 14 days upon entry. In the first series of flights to help Canadians return home, Air Canada will operate a special flight today from Morocco. Flights will also be planned for Peru and Spain, and other countries as soon as possible. Factors such as the number of Canadians, airspace closures, and the local situation are being taken into consideration in order to identify the locations for these flights. We are currently working with Air Canada and are engaged with other airlines as we assess global needs. The Government of Canada is working with Canadian airlines to ensure that stranded Canadians are offered a reasonable commercial price for their return ticket home. All Canadians abroad are strongly encouraged to register with Global Affairs Canada. This will allow the Government of Canada to provide information to them as soon as it becomes available. Ottawa Public Health – Guidance to help business owners like grocery stores and pharmacies to implement social distancing during the Covid-19 outbreak. see flyer here Ontario has created a new self-assessment tool If you think you have 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) symptoms or have been in close contact with someone who has it, use this self-assessment to help determine if you need to seek further care. Visit here. If you require help in Ottawa South, please visit our website for Community links and contacts. Ottawa Public Health For the latest updates, please click here. Government of Ontario Every day at 10:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. ET, the Province of Ontario’s novel coronavirus (COVID-19) web page will be updated with the most up-to-date information including the status of cases in Ontario. Government of Canada For the latest COVID-19 updates, please click here. For the latest on Employment and Social Development changes for employees and employers, click here. |