As the Omicron variant-fueled tsunami of COVID-19 continues to spread, parents and teachers in four provinces are prepared for pupils to return to school on Monday.
After their governments postponed their return due to record-breaking case numbers over the holidays, children in Ontario and Quebec, Canada’s two largest provinces, will resume in-person learning.
Today, Ontario reported 3,595 COVID-19 patients in hospitals, including 579 in intensive care.
The latest figures represent a drop from the day before, but Health Minister Christine Elliott tweeted not all hospitals report their COVID-19 numbers over the weekend.
Quebec, meanwhile, says hospitalizations rose by 105 over the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of patients to 3,300.
Manitoba and Nova Scotia will also send kids back to the classroom on Monday, with Nova Scotia being the only province in the Atlantic region to be doing so.
While public health experts, parents and officials agree that in-school learning is best for children, school boards, families and unions say they’re bracing for an increase in staff absences because of the virus.
Ontario and Nova Scotia also plan to supply students with rapid antigen tests as one of the safety precautions to keep schools open.
Source_ the Canadian press
