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People wait in line at a COVID-19 assessment centre at Mount Sinai Hospital, in Toronto, on Sept. 24, 2020.Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press

Ontario Premier Doug Ford is encouraging anyone with COVID-19 symptoms who lives in a virus hot spot to get tested.

Ford says the province has set up additional testing units in those regions but some people seem to be holding back from getting an assessment.

His comments come as the province reports that it conducted 24,049 tests in the last day, with nearly the same amount being processed.

Ford says the province now has the capacity to process up to 50,000 tests per day and has eliminated its testing backlog.

He says the government would like to see more people getting tested in regions where the virus has been surging.

The province changed its testing guidelines last month, making COVID-19 tests only available to symptomatic people by appointment at its assessment centres.

The change came after the government was heavily criticized for hours-long lineups at walk-in testing centres that assessed people with or without symptoms.

Ontario is reporting 821 new cases of COVID-19 today, and three new deaths due to the virus.

Health Minister Christine Elliott says 327 cases are in Toronto, 136 in Peel Region, 79 in Ottawa, and 64 in York Region.

In total, 274 people are hospitalized in Ontario due to COVID-19.

Children in Ontario’s four COVID-19 hot spots should not go trick-or-treating this Halloween says Premier Doug Ford, stressing that people’s willingness to follow the recommendation could impact the holiday season. Ford says that he is acting on the advice of the province’s top doctor as cases continue to grow in Toronto, Ottawa, Peel Region and York Region.

The Canadian Press

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