COVID-19 Update

Considered

• 2020-05-07 · Board of Health · amended

  Decision as filed

  The Board of Health recommends that: 1. City Council commend Toronto Public Health staff for their exemplary dedication and hard work to keep Torontonians safe and healthy through the COVID-19 pandemic. 2. City Council direct the General Manager, Shelter, Support and Housing Administration, in consultation with the Medical Officer of Health, to conduct a review of measures needed to protect clients and to continue to provide shelter services safely while COVID-19 is a concern, including reviewing the existing Toronto Shelter Standards related to the separation of beds and the use of bunk beds, and report on the implementation considerations for medium- and longer-term response strategies.

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  3. City Council direct the City Manager and appropriate staff to consult with Chinese-Canadian social justice organizations about their work and the opportunity for collaboration including, but not limited to: a. ensuring new services introduced to address the negative impacts of COVID-19 are culturally and linguistically accessible to all Toronto residents, including those that speak Cantonese and Mandarin Chinese; b. creating a public awareness campaign to counter anti-Chinese and anti-Asian racism and discrimination exacerbated by the global pandemic and to launch it as soon as possible as part of the "Toronto For All" public education initiative; and c. recording and addressing incidents of anti-Chinese and anti-Asian violence, harassment, and labour and housing discrimination as part of the City's Vision Statement on Access, Equity and Diversity. 4. City Council request the Government of Ontario to require the collection and public reporting of health and community service data, including COVID-19 tests disaggregated by race and occupation, in collaboration with affected communities and health professionals. 5. City Council request the Government of Ontario to proactively share data disaggregated by race, occupation, and congregate settings to the public and public health units during the COVID-19 recovery phase. 6. City Council request the Government of Ontario to review the staffing and funding models for the long-term care sector, including issues of poor and precarious working conditions, to permanently improve the standards of care and reduce the risk of infectious disease outbreaks. 7. City Council request the Government of Ontario to permanently ensure that sufficient paid sick leave is available to all workers who must quarantine or self-isolate, without the requirement for a doctor's note.

  Clerk’s note

  The Board of Health: 1. Requested the Government of Canada to significantly increase funding to support the City of Toronto's efforts to rapidly rehouse shelter residents during the COVID-19 pandemic and to create lasting permanent affordable housing options to end chronic homelessness. 2. Urged Health Canada to increase funding for a spectrum of safer supply initiatives, including enhanced and flexible injectable and oral hydromorphone programs.

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  3. Requested the Government of Ontario to continue supporting Toronto's COVID-19 homelessness and supportive housing response by: a. providing proactive testing in shelters and respites; b. providing additional Personal Protective Equipment for frontline shelter staff; c. establishing a regional Greater Toronto Area plan for isolation and recovery spaces for those in the shelter system; d. establishing an immediate alternative to the practice of discharging people into homelessness from provincial correctional institutions; e. providing resources and supports for isolation and recovery spaces for the provincially-funded supportive housing sector; and f. providing additional funding for the provision of permanent supportive and affordable housing opportunities. 4. Requested the Government of Ontario to increase overall COVID-19 testing capacity at a rate determined by global best practices and leading public health officials to ensure that adequate testing is in place to enable the safe reopening of regular life in the recovery phase. 5. Urged the Government of Ontario to support Toronto's Overdose Prevention Sites (OPS) through the provision of funding and Personal Protective Equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic. 6. Requested the Government of Ontario to review enhanced measures to reduce community spread and protect frontline workers, such as providing separate living accommodations for workers at higher risk like those in health care and providing isolation accommodations away from families for people who test positive for COVID-19. 7. Requested the Government of Ontario to work with food advocates and producers to review existing emergency restrictions on farmers' markets and food markets through a comprehensive public health lens and provide clarification to municipalities under what conditions, if any, markets can safely open and operate. 8. Requested the Ontario Ministry of Health, using an expert scientific work group, to immediately explore how best to support interaction between caregivers and residents in long-term care homes that provides for the health and safety of residents and staff. 9. Requested the Ontario Minister of Health to extend the one-time funding for Toronto Public Health beyond 2021, reverse previously announced cuts, and provide full 100 percent provincial funding to support public health protection functions, including infectious and communicable diseases prevention and control. 10. Requested the Ontario Minister of Health to pause the previously announced reduction and restructuring of local public health units beyond 2021 in order to allow Toronto Public Health to focus on its immediate and ongoing COVID-19 response and recovery work. 11. Urged the Ontario Minister of Health to support the implementation of managed opioid/safer supply programs, including by adding the required formulation of hydromorphone (i.e., 50 milligrams/milliliters and 100 milligrams/milliliters hydromorphone) to the Ontario Drug Benefit Formulary to enable injectable hydromorphone programs to operate. 12. Requested the Medical Officer of Health to strongly consider, as a fundamental component of the COVID-19 recovery strategy, the following: a. pursuing opportunities to provide more space for pedestrians, cyclists, and public transit riders to allow for better physical distancing, in addition to improving the safety of all road users; b. ensuring adequate and equitable access to open space and parkland for mental health and exercise; c. applying a "Housing First" approach to seek permanent affordable housing solutions, including new supportive housing units as part of the City of Toronto's response to shelters and homelessness; d. consulting, in coordination with the Toronto Office of Recovery and Rebuild, with affected communities and stakeholders, including Indigenous and Black communities and the non-profit sector; e. developing guidelines for the safe operation of farmers' markets and community food markets, in support of access to healthy and affordable food; f. a scaled-up and robust program of case and contact tracing, along with the resource requirements; g. close coordination with Toronto school boards; h. ensuring a robust approach to mental health promotion; i. reconciliation; and j. an enhanced public awareness campaign to increase knowledge of how to protect against COVID-19, combat misinformation, and address common public questions such as when and how to wear homemade masks. The Medical Officer of Health gave a presentation on COVID-19: An Update to the Board of Health. The Deputy City Manager, Community and Social Services, gave a presentation on Community and Social Services: Supporting Vulnerable Torontonians during COVID-19. The General Manager, Shelter, Support and Housing Administration, gave a presentation on Shelter, Support and Housing Administration Response for People Experiencing Homelessness during COVID-19.

• 2020-05-28 · Toronto City Council · amended

  Clerk’s note

  City Council considered Items HL16.2 and CC21.1, together.