Ontario Prime Minister Doug Ford announced he was itching to return to the barber himself as he asked the Toronto residents to be patient while waiting for the barbershop to reopen.
Ford said he understands residents are eager for personal care companies to open their doors since questions arose last week about allowing haircuts outdoors.
“I hear you … I would go to the dog snappers at this point,” he said at a press conference Monday. “I have more gel here than you can shake with a stick.”
The salons should reopen in a few more weeks, added Health Secretary Christine Elliott. She asked the Ontarians for a little more patience and asked them not to turn to underground companies for their hair cut.
“Personal service companies like hair salons are more dangerous because people are in closer contact and the risk of transmission increases,” she said.
Although some Toronto residents are keen to get their hair cut as soon as possible, even outdoors, local hairdressers told Daily Hive that cutting hair on the street poses too many logistical challenges.
“Pedestrians trip over extension cables, a gust of wind hits the equipment. Let’s imagine the nightmare situations, ”Tyler Moore, owner of the salon, told Daily Hive on Friday.
Salon owners say they’d rather have their staff vaccinated earlier and reopen indoors with appropriate equipment, electricity, plumbing, and COVID-19 precautions.
Speaking from Centenary Hospital in Scarborough on Monday, Ford and Elliott announced that the government is allocating $ 1.2 billion to hospitals in Ontario to help them make up for lost revenue during the COVID-19 pandemic .
Of this, $ 697 million will be used for historic labor fund deficits in qualified public hospitals.
Small and medium-sized hospitals, as well as those focused on a specialty or rehabilitation, will be prioritized for the money as their operations may have been disproportionately affected, Elliott said.
An additional $ 572 million will be allocated to help hospitals meet costs incurred from closed retail services, no co-payments for private rooms, and parking.
Officials say the influx of cash will help hospitals cope with their growing surgical backlog and continue to care for the sick and vulnerable during and after the pandemic.
Premier Ford, Minister @celliottability and Minister @PBethlenfalvy make an announcement https://t.co/nX1t3wrhT5
– Doug Ford (@fordnation) March 22, 2021
