Region starting to think about what a return to normal will look like: CAO

Staff at the Region of Waterloo have started to think about what reopening the region will look like, says regional chief administrative officer Mike Murray.

But the region won't make a decision on reopening alone and Murray says it's unlikely to be anytime soon.

"We will have to wait on direction from the province," he said Wednesday during a regular COVID-19 media briefing.

He said the region is regularly asked about when things will return to normal.

"The very short answer to that is: we don't yet know what reopening will look like," he said, noting Ontario Premier Doug Ford has said any reopening of the province will be phased in and incremental. The region's approach will mimic that, Murray said.

Part of the recovery plan includes looking at when transit services can be ramped back up, he said. On Monday, the region reduced the frequency of service on some routes and limited the number of people who can be on a bus at one time.

"We need to get to that point where we can ensure that it's safe for operators, it's safe for passengers and then we'll be able to ramp up service again," he said.

No new deaths

There were no new deaths from COVID-19 in Waterloo region in new numbers released by Region of Waterloo Public Health Wednesday morning.

Since the pandemic began, 31 people have died from the virus in Waterloo region.

There are now 550 confirmed or presumptive cases of COVID-19 in Waterloo region, according to numbers from Region of Waterloo Public Health released Wednesday morning. That's up from 528 on Tuesday.

The numbers also showed:

• 4,382 tests have been done.
• 27 people are in hospital.
• 178 confirmed or presumptive cases are healthcare workers, making up 32 per cent of all cases.
• There are active outbreaks at 11 long-term care facilities.

There are also now 193 resolved cases in the region, up from 184 resolved cases reported on Tuesday.

Testing still limited

The region is not currently testing everyone with symptoms for COVID-19. Public health expanded criteria on Friday, but has said there are certain groups who are prioritized for testing including health-care workers, essential workers, hospital patients and people living and working in long-term care homes.

The region says negative test results are also no longer being reported on its website because the province is no longer providing information about the negative results.

• COVID-19 | Coverage from CBC Kitchener-Waterloo
• COVID-19 | By the numbers, coronavirus tracker for Waterloo region
• COVID-19 | Cancellations, closures and changes in Waterloo region

11 active outbreaks at long-term care homes

The number of active outbreaks at long-term care homes dropped by one in the newly-released numbers to 11. The outbreak at St. Andrew's Terrace in Cambridge was declared over on Tuesday.

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