back to classes this week, Canada’s public health officials are keeping a close eye on signs of a “resurgence” of the coronavirus in communities.A key signal will be the “R number,” or reproduction number, which is a way of rating a disease’s ability to spread.
From a public health perspective, it can help identify whether or not that spread is manageable.Nationally, that number is now “hovering above one,” said Dr.
Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, at a news conference Tuesday.“That’s not a good sign,” she noted. “We do not want that to happen.