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13 | O akville B eaver | T hursday,A pril 21,2022 insidehalton.com The province is increasing ac- cess to COVID-19 antiviral treat- ments and PCR testing for those at high risk. With hospitalizations rising, Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kieran Moore said On- tario is in the midst of a sixth wave of the pandemic. Moore said he strongly recom- mends Ontarians wear masks at all public indoor settings and get vaccinated. He said the province would not bring back a broad mask man- date at this time, but noted this may be necessary in the future. He did announce new access to COVID-19 antiviral treatments and PCR testing. The following higher-risk groups are eligible to be tested and assessed for antiviral treat- ments in Ontario: • Individuals aged 18 and over who are immunocompromised; • Individuals aged 70 and over; • Individuals aged 60 and over with fewer than three vaccine doses; and • Individuals aged 18 and over with fewer than three vaccine doses and at least one risk condi- tion. A health-care provider needs to determine whether antiviral treatment is right for an individu- al. Meanwhile, Halton Region Public Health is reporting four additional COVID-19 related deaths. There have been 317 new con- firmed cases of the virus reported in Halton in the past week, which is up from the 290 cases reported this time last week. NEWS WEEKLY ROUNDUP: ONTARIO EXPANDS ELIGIBILITY FOR ANTIVIRAL TREATMENT DAVID LEA dlea@metroland.com