Ontario reports fewest new COVID-19 cases since mid-September
Posted June 15, 2021 10:00 am.
Last Updated June 15, 2021 2:25 pm.
Ontario is reporting 296 new COVID-19 cases and 13 additional deaths on Tuesday.
It marks the smallest daily increase in new infections for the province since Sept. 17.
The province is reporting a test positivity rate of 2.3 per cent, down from 2.7 per cent one week ago.
There were 17,162 tests completed in the last 24-hour period.
Locally, there are 62 new cases in Peel, 60 in Toronto, 45 in Waterloo, 15 in York Region and 13 in Halton.
There were another 645 resolved cases, dropping the active case count once again. Resolved cases have outnumbered new infections each day since mid-April.
The province reported 447 cases and 4 deaths on Monday.
The rolling seven-day average has dropped to 478, reaching the lowest point since late September.
There are now 433 people hospitalized in the province with 382 in the ICU. Hospitalizations are down nearly 200 since one week ago and ICU numbers have dropped nearly 100 in the last week.
Graphics courtesy of @jkwan_md
There were 184,989 vaccine doses administered in the last 24-hour period.
As of 8:00 p.m. Monday, 11,529,430 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered and 73.4 per cent of Ontarians over the age of 12 have received at least one dose, while 15.8 per cent of residents are now fully vaccinated.
Over two million Ontarians have now received both doses of the vaccine and the City of Toronto announced that 20 per cent of residents are now fully vaccinated.
Many Ontarians expressed frustration at their inability to book vaccinations on Monday after the province accelerated second doses in areas where the Delta variant is spreading.
The province had said people in seven regions who got their first dose on May 9 or earlier could book a second shot this week but spots were quickly filled.
The expanded eligibility in the province includes residents in Delta variant hot spots and a shorter interval for first dose AstraZeneca recipients – down to eight weeks from 12.
Graphics courtesy of @jkwan_md
Children and adults under 30 driving COVID-19 surge in parts of northern Ontario
Officials in a northern Ontario health unit say children, adults under 30, and people who are not vaccinated are driving a surge in COVID-19 cases in the region.
Dr. Lianne Catton says the case rate in the Porcupine Health Unit is 290 per 100,000 – nearly five times higher than the rate the province had set as a benchmark for reopening.
The health unit, which includes the city of Timmins, did not move to the first stage of the province’s reopening plan last week.
Recent data shows the majority of the active cases are located in Timmins and in First Nations communities in the James Bay and Hudson Bay regions.
Catton said last week that the more infectious Delta variant, which first appeared in India, was detected through community transmission.
Catton is urging residents to restrict their interactions and continue to follow public health measures.
She says there has been some progress in recent days, but it’s early to say when the region will reopen.
“We need to see a more sustained pattern that is really solid before making any considerations,” she told a news conference.
The Ford government announced Monday it will lift land and water border restrictions allowing for interprovincial travel between Quebec and Manitoba as of this week.
Solicitor General Sylvia Jones says the order will expire at 12:01 a.m. on Wednesday and those entering Ontario must “continue to follow the public health measures in place in the province.”
Ontario last extended the ban on May 29, it was due to expire on Wednesday.
With files from The Canadian Press
