Ontario Hospital Association calls for more lockdowns as COVID-19 cases surge to 2,432 decreased by 0.1% to 85.5%. The average positivity rate across Ontario since yesterday has decreased by 1.1% to 4.0%, meaning that 40 out of every 1,000 tests performed were positive for COVID-19 on December 16. Ontario is reporting 23 new COVID-19 deaths today, including 13 in long-term care facilities. Hospitalizations have decreased by 13 to 919, with 7 more patients with COVID- 19 admitted to ICUs, for a total of 263, and 15 additional patients on ventilators, for a total of 172. A total of 58,178 tests were completed yesterday, with the backlog of tests under investigation increasing by 13,034 to 78,631. There are 170 new cases in Ontario schools today, a decrease of 53 from yesterday, with 143 student cases, 26 staff cases, and 1 case in an unidentified individual. There are 29 new cases in licensed child care settings, a decrease of 6 from yesterday, with 12 cases among children and 17 cases among staff. In the greater Kawarthas region, there are 10 new cases to report, including 4 in Northumberland, 3 in Peterborough, 2 in Hastings Prince Edward, and 1 in Kawartha Lakes. There are no new cases in Haliburton. None of the cases reported today in Ontario schools or licensed child care settings are in the greater Kawarthas region. An additional 15 cases have been resolved, including 6 in Hastings Prince Edward, 4 in Northumberland, 3 in Peterborough, 1 in Kawartha Lakes, and 1 in Haliburton. There are currently 123 active cases in the greater Kawarthas region, a decrease of 3 from yesterday, including 45 in Hastings Prince Edward (including 15 in Quinte West and 20 in Belleville), 44 in Northumberland, 24 in Peterborough, and 10 in Kawartha Lakes. There are no active cases in Haliburton. Since the pandemic began in the greater Kawarthas region, there have been 260 confirmed positive cases in the Peterborough area (231 resolved with 5 deaths), 220 in the City of Kawartha Lakes (191 resolved with 32 deaths), 178 in Northumberland County (134 resolved with 1 death), 27 in Haliburton County (27 resolved with no deaths), and 235 in Hastings and Prince Edward counties (185 resolved with 5 deaths). The most recent death was reported in Peterborough on November 23. Province-wide, there have been 148,967 confirmed cases, an increase of 2,432 from yesterday, with 127,425 cases resolved (85.5% of all cases), an increase of 2,009 from yesterday. There have been 4,058 deaths, an increase of 23 from yesterday, with 2,526 deaths in long-term care homes, an increase of 13 from yesterday. The number of hospitalizations has decreased by 13 to 919, with 7 more patients with COVID-19 admitted 3/7