TORONTO – With the World Health Organization (WHO) having lifted the travel advisory to Toronto the province is now taking measures to recover the economic impact felt by the SARS outbreak.

To date, Health Canada reports that there have been 348 probable or suspected cases of the disease and 23 deaths. Ontario experienced the largest outbreak with 264 suspected cases. Each of these cases has been contracted through private residences, hospitals and specific public buildings.

Earnie Eves has outlined what he calls the Assistance and Recovery Strategy, which will include the following:

Tourism: $118 million will be spent over the next two years to draw tourists back to Toronto. All three levels of government are expected to participate.

Business: The province will spend $10 million to market the city in the international business community.

Legislation: Taxes on attractions admissions and accommodations will be exempt from May 1st to September 30th, 2003.

Additional legislation, if passed, will protect the jobs of employees who were quarantined during the outbreak.

Municipalities: Assistance will be offered to municipalities so that they can recover staffing costs affected by SARS.

Health care: Six mobile rapid-response teams are being formed to deal with SARS and other infectious diseases in the area that they originated.

For more information go to the province’s website at www.gov.on.ca.

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