COVID-19: Province to roll out school vaccine clinics; Ontario reports 526 new cases with 353 of those identified in unvaccinated people

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NEW CORONAVIRUS CASES IN OTTAWA AND ONTARIO

Ontario is reporting 526 new laboratory confirmed COVID-19 cases Monday, with 353 of those cases identified in people who are unvaccinated, while 60 cases involved people who were partially vaccinated. No deaths were reported in the province.

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Another 321 cases have been resolved in the past 24 hours. There have now been 556,087 total cases in the province and 9,418 deaths, with 542,797 cases now considered resolved.

There were 15,784 tests conducted in the past 24 hours with a 2.7 per cent positivity.

There were 128 new cases in Toronto, 83 in Peel, 66 in York, and 52 in Hamilton, according to provincial data.

Ottawa Public Health is reporting 20 new cases and no deaths, with 27,997 total cases and 593 deaths in the city since the beginning of the pandemic.

There are now 138 active cases as that indicator continues to rise.

There are three patients in local hospitals and one in ICU. There have been 27,266 resolved cases where people have recovered.

The Delta variant has not been as prevalent in Ottawa as in other communities in the province, where the highly transmissible variant has accounted for surging daily case numbers, outbreaks and increased hospitalizations.

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There have been 96 confirmed Delta variant cases in Ottawa, accounting for only one per cent of all cases involving variants. However, nearly half of those cases (43) have been identified in the past 30 days in Ottawa.

There have been 6,841 confirmed cases of the Alpha variant, which has been the dominant strain in Ottawa, accounting for 74 per cent of all variants. It has been linked to 62 local deaths.

Only eight cases of Alpha variant have been confirmed in Ottawa in the last 30 days.

There were 444 tests conducted on Sunday with a 2.7 per cent positivity, well above last week’s average 1.4 per cent test positivity.

There have been 116 cases in the last seven days at a weekly rate of 11 cases per 100,000 population. The local virus reproduction rate is 1.11, which is below the provincial rate, but above the 1.0 threshold, indicating the virus is still spreading in the community.

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Ontario hospitals currently have 108 patients and 119 in intensive care, with 66 requiring a ventilator. Ontario Public Health statistics of ICU hospitalizations and ventilator cases contain some patients who no longer test positive for COVID-19 but who are being treated for conditions caused by the virus. As such, the number of patients in ICU or that require a ventilator may exceed the number of patients in hospital with COVID-19.

The virus reproduction rate, which measures the rate of spread in the province, is an average 1.39 for the past week.

Any value over 1.0 indicates the virus is spreading.

Another 26,033 vaccine doses were administered on Sunday, with 20,213,876 total doses administered in Ontario as of 8 p.m. Sunday. That represents 81.5 per cent of eligible residents (age 12-plus) with at least one dose, and 9,583,506 Ontarians who are fully immunized, or 73.5 per cent of eligible residents.

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In surrounding regions, there were two new cases in the Hastings-Prince Edward region, two in Kingston and one in Leeds, Grenville and Lanark.

No new cases were found in Renfrew or in the Eastern Ontario public health unit.

Public Health Ontario reported 63 new cases of the Delta variant provincewide on Monday, with another 63 cases identified Sunday. There were 22 cases of the Alpha variant reported Sunday and four on Monday.

There have been 145,692 confirmed cases of the Alpha variant so far in Ontario and 6,245 total confirmed cases of the Delta variant.

THE LATEST COVID-19 NEWS IN ONTARIO

The province is working with Ontario’s 34 public health units and with school boards to host vaccination clinics in, or nearby schools.

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COVID-19 vaccination clinics are expected to run before the start of school, and through the first few weeks of class as part of the province’s strategy to target those who have yet to receive a first or second dose.

The clinics will also provide “accessible and convenient access” to eligible students and their families, and to educators and school staff.

“We have made tremendous progress getting students, staff and their families vaccinated – they are critical to protecting schools and keeping our communities safe,” said Minister of Education Stephen Lecce in a statement. “As part of the last mile campaign to reach as many students and staff as possible and to keep schools as safe as possible, we are requiring school boards and public health units to roll out clinics in or close to schools.”

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As of this week, more than 69 per cent of youth aged 12 to 17 have received a first vaccine dose, and 56 per cent have received a second dose.

Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kieran Moore said the return to in-person classes is “crucially important” for students’ mental, physical and social well-being. “Having vaccination clinics at our schools will make it more convenient for students to receive their vaccine in a familiar and comfortable environment and will help to ensure a safer and sustained reopening of our schools,” Moore said.

Vaccines will only be provided if informed consent is received from the individual, which includes eligible students, government officials said.

COVID-19 VACCINE NEWS AND UPDATES

Ottawa continues to be above the provincial rate for vaccine uptake, and remains one of the leaders among Ontario’s 34 public health units.

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There have now been 1,500,108 total doses administered in the city, with 776,655 eligible residents having received at least one dose, representing 84 per cent of the 12-plus population, and 702,084 (76 per cent) fully vaccinated.

COVID-19 BY THE NUMBERS

Ottawa

(Reported Monday)

20: New cases

27,997: Total cases

0: New deaths

593: Total deaths

138: Active cases

3: In hospital

1: In ICU

11.0: Rolling seven-day average of cases per 100,000 people

1.4: Per cent test positivity, previous seven days

1.11: Estimated R(t), seven-day average. A number lower than one indicates the virus is receding.

Ontario

(Reported Monday)

526: New confirmed cases

556,087: Total cases

0: New deaths

9,418: Total deaths

108: Currently in hospital

*119: In intensive care

*66: On a ventilator

(*Note: Public Health Ontario statistics of ICU hospitalizations and ventilator cases contain some patients who no longer test positive for COVID-19 but who are being treated for conditions caused by the virus.)

26,033: Doses administered

20,213,876: Total doses administered

15,784: Tests conducted in previous 24 hours

2.7: Per cent positivity in cases

1.39: Estimated reproductive number, R(t). A number lower than one indicates the virus is receding.