Ontario reported 1,684 people hospitalized with COVID-19 on Saturday amid a sixth wave of the pandemic.
The number is higher than that reported on Friday, when 1,591 people were said to be hospitalized with COVID-19. The number is also the highest since February 12, when the province reported 1,704 COVID-19 hospitalizations.
Of the patients in the hospital, 212 require intensive care and 81 are breathing with the help of a ventilator, according to the Ontario Ministry of Health.
About 46 percent of people now hospitalized with the virus were admitted to hospital with COVID-19, while 54 percent were admitted for another reason but have since tested positive. 61 percent of people in the ICU were admitted for COVID-19.
The province reported 3,820 new cases of COVID-19 through limited PCR testing on Saturday. Meanwhile, the seven-day average of new cases is 2,927.
The province reported another 23 deaths of people with the disease on Saturday, bringing the total number of deaths from COVID-19 in Ontario to 12,728.
A total of 20,004 tests were completed the day before. The positivity rate for the test is 17.3 percent on Saturday.
Public health units administered another 35,549 doses of COVID-19 vaccines on Friday. The province said 91 percent of Ontarians over the age of 12 are fully vaccinated, meaning they have received two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine.
There are 201 COVID-19 outbreaks in nursing homes, 160 in nursing homes and 90 in hospitals, according to Ontario’s “COVID-19 Daily Epidemiological Summary: January 15, 2020 to April 22, 2022” Ontario.
As of Friday, a total of 187 residents and 38 health workers in nursing homes are infected with the virus, the province said. More than 4,400 long-term care home residents have died with COVID-19 in Ontario since the pandemic began in March 2020.
The numbers come after the Ontario government announced Friday that it will extend its mask mandates in high-risk settings through June 11.
The rule requiring masks in health care settings, long-term care homes and public transportation was due to expire on April 27, but Dr. Kieran Moore, Ontario’s chief medical officer of health, said it would be extended.
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“To protect our progress in managing this latest wave, I am maintaining mask wearing requirements in specific public settings where people who are, or may be, at increased risk of serious outcomes are in close contact for extended periods of time. “Moore said in a statement.
Moore said following masking requirements and staying up-to-date on vaccinations are “the best ways we can prevent transmission and protect our friends, families and our communities.”
Most other pandemic measures, including the wearing of masks in most public places, vaccination proof rules and crowd capacity limits, have ended in the province.
Other settings where masks will now be required through June 11 include nursing homes, shelters and other congregate care settings.
Other directives from the chief medical officer on mask requirements for healthcare workers and paramedics and long-term care measures would also expire on April 27, but the province says they will now remain until June 11 as well.
Reference-www.cbc.ca