Lax regulations have allowed COVID-19 to ravage vulnerable seniors’ residences across Peel Region

The situation is growing more dire at assisted living homes not managed by the region, operating licensed long-term care beds.

There are currently seven other long-term care or community care facilities experiencing COVID-19 outbreaks (one or more confirmed cases) in Peel.

One of the hardest hit is Grace Manor in Brampton. Operated by Holland Christian Homes, the seniors’ facility confirmed its first case of the coronavirus on April 7. In a statement from the company’s CEO Ken Rawlins, he assured the community that “swift action” to halt the spread of the virus has been taken.

Despite stepped-up efforts to protect the elderly in Peel’s long-term care and retirement homes, the number of infections in these institutions continues to climb.

Deputy Premier and Minister of Health Christine Elliott has repeatedly said the province is building an “iron ring” around Ontario’s seniors’ homes, but her government had previously turned a blind eye to regulations in the sector.

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First published in The Pointer Brampton and The Pointer Mississauga on April 15, 2020