@fordnation@ONThealth
Dear Premier,
I gave the CMOH an opportunity to reply to my questions about the public health measures employed and withdrawn in 2022. Specifically, I requested information on how the health inequities of the most vulnerable & marginalized were mitigated?
I also requested information about the proposed procurement of high-quality masks for students in the fall of 2022? Why didn't that happen?
What were the considerations given to vulnerable children such as the immunocompromised?
How is SARS-CoV-2 like another respiratory virus?
My questions were not answered. I received an unsigned reply from the Office of the CMOH.
It was a generic statement that failed to address the questions in my April 7, 2023 letter.
This correspondence is included in the analysis of the documents I received in my FOIPPA inquiry.
Was the CMOH forbidden from replying directly to me?
Do you think it is appropriate for the OCMOH or @SylviaJonesMPP to pick the reporters who are permitted to interview Dr. Moore? (as in an interview with Toronto Star reporter Kenyon Wallace being quashed by her Comms Director?)
A link to this manuscript may be found next. I believe Ontarians deserved better transparency & action last year to safeguard the most vulnerable & marginalized among us. "Mask if it's right for you" does not acknowledge the importance of N95 masks & those who cannot afford them.
"Stepping Away from an Evidence-Based Public Health Policy and the Precautionary Principle During the Time of Omicron: Did the Ontario Government Fail to Consider the Potential Harms to Highly #COVID19 Vulnerable Ontarians?" 1/20
The Office of the CMOH (OCMOH) received my FOIPPA request on October 24, 2022: I requested the scientific evidence that CMOH relied upon to shorten isolation periods and that demonstrated one-way masking, presumably of the most vulnerable, was a safe approach. 2/20
The OCMOH was granted two 60-day extensions and provided me with 29 PDF documents on March 27, 2023. It didn't appear their reply was fully responsive to my request. However, after review, there was a narrative. 3/20
FOI Analysis from the 29 documents provided by the Office of the CMOH RE: COVID-19 Public Health Policy adopted August 31, 2022, is finally done. I've shared my report with @maritstiles@NickelBelt and the @Ont_Ombudsman
It should be made public tomorrow.
Have to give credit to DJC who read all 65 pages, edited and made it much better in a day. I hope people find it a fair analysis based on the information provided. It's an Op-Ed with evidence & policy to contrast what the government said it relied upon in withdrawing PH measures.
I hope it causes people to question what we should expect from our government during a public health crisis. Do certain groups of people matter less? How can we mandate public health ethics, equity, and the precautionary principle?
If #COVID19 is really subsiding in severity & prevalence like so many believe, then please explain the curves:
Cases in Canada appear to be on a disappearing course (Note the grey area is subject to adjustment as other cases are added and the last several months are incomplete)
However, looking at deaths it looks like the same ole pandemic (the far end of the curve is highly inaccurate and incomplete ie, deaths will climb as more data arrives):
This leaves me with 🤦🏼♂️ thoughts:
- We are capturing fewer & fewer cases, even high risk cases, as time goes on.
- We are ignoring the deaths of the vulnerable who we know are:
- The elderly, chronically ill, immunocompromised, racial minorities, the impoverished
Have we given up?
#COVID19 is still around despite what we may wish.
Windsor-Essex hospitalizations Feb 18: 66 confirmed or suspected; Feb 28: 100.
Coincides with a sewage peak on Feb 17 (2nd highest since May 2022)
Inpatient capacity in Windsor-Essex is at 104%.
Fortunately, there's a strategy.
Unfortunately,
It's to test less often,
To distribute fewer #COVID19 rapid Ag tests,
To ignore the risks to the vulnerable: LTCH/RH residents, hospitalized patients & visitors, immunocompromised, persons with disabilities, radicalized minorities, and the impoverished. #onpoli
To ignore the precautionary principle and hope for the best,
To ignore risks of #LongCovid
To ignore the problem of Xs mortality, particularly increased cardiovascular mortality among young adults, and the risks to children who are poorly protected & have had multiple infections
My FOI to the Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Ontario is complete. I requested all scientific evidence that he relied upon to make the June 2022 decision to shorten the isolation period to 24 hours after resolution of fever & to end masking in public buildings and schools.
The number of records decreased substantially from the initial search. Just 29 records were identified and a number of FOIPPA. A number of redactions are noted:
"Section 12 has been applied to a portion of the records to protect confidential cabinet records, #onpoli#COVID19
"Section 13 has been applied to a portion of the records to protect confidential advice to government,
Section 14(1)(e) and s.20 has been applied to a portion of the records where disclosure could reasonably be expected to endanger the life or physical safety of a member,."
The Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Health was granted a 2nd 60-day extension @ONThealth to reply to my October 25th, 2022, FOI request:
"On August 31, 2022, Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Kieran Moore announced a public health policy change in which he stated... "
"...it was permissible to go to work or into public buildings masked despite a recent COVID19 infection, provided the individual was afebrile for 24 hours and their symptoms were improving."
"This advice was contrary to recommendations by members of the Advisory COVID19 Ontario Science Table. It is in stark contrast to the recommendations of the Public Health Agency of Canada and the Centres for Disease Control (CDC, USA)."