COVID-19 recap; feds commit $75m to off-reserve Indigenous people; province wants to beef up testing; no lives lost to COVID across Simcoe and Muskoka

Here's some COVID-19 info you may have missed on Thursday, May 21st

The federal government has announced additional funding for Indigenous people living off-reserve and in urban areas, while Queen’s Park pushed for further testing as it announced how its research funding has been put to use, and the local health unit confirmed 15 recoveries and no lives lost since its Wednesday update.

Government of Canada

The federal government is providing pandemic aid for Indigenous people living in cities and off-reserve. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pledged $75-million in new funding for organizations that he says addresses “critical needs” of Indigenous people living in urban centres and off-reserve. Trudeau says the new funding will help organizations with food security, personal protective equipment and mental-health support services. He says the federal government will roll-out funding in the coming weeks.

RELATED: FEDS PLEDGE $75M FOR INDIGENOUS PEOPLE IN URBAN CENTRES AND OFF-RESERVE

Province of Ontario

The Ontario government is funding 15 high-quality and “promising” proposals submitted in response to a recent call for proposals for the Ontario COVID-19 Rapid Research Fund. The previously announced $20-million fund is for the research community to come up with ways to fight COVID-19. Eleven of the 22 clinical trials that are being led by Ontario’s research hospitals, universities and colleges have already secured the necessary approvals by Health Canada to advance potential vaccines and therapeutics.

RELATED: PREMIER FORD WANTS RANDOM TESTING AS ONTARIO MOVES AHEAD WITH ‘GROUNDBREAKING’ COVID-19 RESEARCH

Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit

The Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit says its caseload now stands at 441, an increase of five since yesterday. Fifteen more people have recovered since yesterday’s update, 324 in total. No lives have been lost since yesterday’s update. The region’s death toll remains at 36.

The Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit’s Medical Officer of Health provides live updates via Facebook video every Tuesday and Friday afternoon.

RELATED: FIFTEEN MORE PEOPLE RECOVERED AS SIMCOE MUSKOKA DISTRICT HEALTH UNIT INCREASES CASE COUNT BY FIVE

Looking for more? Check out the Barrie360.com news page

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