Ontario pauses plan to lift capacity limits in some settings that require vaccine proof

TORONTO — Ontario is pausing its plan to lift capacity limits in the remaining settings where proof of vaccination is required, following a rise in COVID-19 cases.

The province had planned on removing a cap on the number of people permitted in night clubs, strip clubs, sex clubs and bathhouses on Monday.

But Dr. Kieran Moore, Ontario’s top doctor, says that move will be delayed for at least 28 days as he monitors the COVID-19 case load.

The decision comes a day after Health Minister Christine Elliott said the province would stay the course with its reopening plan.

The province says hospital and intensive care capacity remains stable, but the positivity rate is increasing, as is the average number of people that a person with COVID-19 will infect.

Ontario reported 454 new cases of COVID-19 today, and the seven-day average of new daily cases sits at 503, compared to 379 a week ago.