4. TARGET THE HOT SPOTS

COVID-19 hits poor neighbourhoods harder. Should we be focusing more on those living in the most racially and economically diverse communities?

In Quebec and Alberta, the COVID mortality rate in neighbourhoods with the highest proportion of visible monitories was more than three times higher than neighbourhoods with the lowest proportion of visible minorities, according to Statistics Canada. While it has had relatively fewer deaths compared with Quebec and Ontario, British Columbia's death rate was more than 10 times higher in neighbourhoods with the highest proportion of visible minorities.

“We know that Black and racialized communities have experienced a greater burden,” Smith said. Under Ontario's Phase 2, scheduled to start in April, populations facing barriers to the “determinants of health” — economic stability, employment, education, access to health services, decent and affordable housing — will be among those eligible for shots. A special group has been struck to “think that through a bit more, and get to a more granular level to see how that will be operationalized,' Smith said.

NATHAN DENETTE / THE CANADIAN PRESS Skaters keep their distance at a rink in Toronto.