A combination of vaccination and public health measures is being credited for declining daily cases of COVID-19 and stable hospitalizations and intensive care admissions.

That’s according to Ontario’s COVID Advisory Table; the group of experts advising the Ford government.

They say the province can control the spread if measures remain in place.

However, as cold weather approaches, driving more activities indoors where the risk of transmission’s higher, the experts say continuing some health measures is essential to maintain control of the pandemic.

”If you lift everything, case numbers go up and ICU admissions will follow, even so to a lesser extent,” says Dr. Peter Juni, Scientific Director of the Advisory Table and frequent guest on Zoomer Radio’s ”Fight Back” with Libby Znaimer.

”So we need to keep masking and we need to keep the vaccine certificates in place.”

Latest modelling shows if there’s no change in policy or people’s behaviour, cases will continue falling, while some increase in social contacts will keep counts stable.

A ”substantial” increase in contacts could lead to over 600 cases a day by the end of November.

Those scenarios assume masking, proof-of-vaccination continue.

Meanwhile, Ontario’s reporting 492 new cases.

All but 167 are in those not fully protected or whose vaccination status is unknown.

There are also 149 in hospital ICUs due to COVID.