Selwyn’s Senis wants COVID-19 vaccination rollout sped up

Motion to be considered Thursday at county council budget meeting

Peterborough County council is expected to address a call to expedite the COVID-19 vaccination process for area seniors during a special meeting Thursday.

If a motion put forward by Selwyn Township Deputy Mayor Sherry Senis is passed by council, a letter would go out to federal and provincial officials calling for vaccinations in all provincial long-term-care homes and senior residences by Feb. 15.

The motion also calls for the provincial and federal government to provide $100 million in emergency funds “to hire adequate staff, provide training, and raise long-term care wages to what Quebec has done.”

The county aids in the administration of Fairhaven longterm-care home, where three residents died late last year as a result of COVID-19.

The Dutton Road facility is also under its fifth COVID-19 outbreak after an employee tested positive on a rapid test.

Senis’ motion calling for change references a letter from Torstar co-proprietors Paul Rivett and Jordan Bitove — which appeared on the front of The Examiner on Jan. 9 — addressing the crisis in Ontario’s long-term-care homes.

The motion also calls on the province to deploy rapid COVID-19 testing for staff and residents in long-term-care facilities and restoring mandatory inspections of long-term-care homes with transparent reporting.

Senis said she realizes the Peterborough area has yet to even receive vaccinations; she understands it will arrive here in early February and there is urgency in acting quickly.

The COVID-19 vaccine will be critical in getting people to go out and support Peterborough businesses, Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith said.

That comes as the provincial government is announcing supports to keep businesses going during the pandemic, which has caused tumultuous economic stress.

Having the vaccine will be one of the most important factors in the local economic recovery, Smith said.

People want to feel safe while going out and supporting local businesses.

The province has a capacity to vaccinate up to 40,000 people daily, if it has the product, he said. The goal is to expand that to 250,000 a day.

County council will address the motion on Thursday when it holds a specially scheduled budget meeting.

Draft county budget

A lower than expected tax increase for the county portion of municipal property tax bills has been tabled in the draft 2021 Peterborough County budget.

The draft budget, to be reviewed by county councillors on Thursday, calls for a 2.23 per cent levy increase.

The 2021 budget identifies $48,052,395 as the amount to be raised from taxation (up $1,501,832 over the 2020 budget levy).

Total expenditures included within the 2021 budget are $80,874,709, a decrease of $7,272,898 over 2020.

This levy hike means an approximate tax increase of $7.15 per $100,000 of residential assessment.