Ontario reports over 200 COVID-19 cases for the first time in 3 weeks

Ontario is reporting 218 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, the first time the province has reported over 200 cases in three weeks.

Three more deaths were reported.

There were 19,400 tests completed in the last 24-hour period with a 1.3 per cent positivity rate.

Locally, there are 38 new cases in Toronto, 38 in Peel Region, 25 in Hamilton, 19 in the Region of Waterloo and 13 in Grey Bruce.

The active case count in the province increased by 49  – there were 169 resolved cases.

The rolling seven-day average increase to 165 cases, up four from yesterday.

The province reported 158 cases and four deaths on Wednesday.

There are now 121 people in the ICU with COVID-19 complications and 79 ICU patients on a ventilator. ICU numbers have dropped to the lowest point since Nov. 14.

The province administered 89,157 COVID-19 vaccine doses on Wednesday for a total of more than 19.2 million shots.

Health Minister Christine Elliott said Thursday more than 80 per cent of people in the province aged 12 and older have now received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.

That means one of three conditions the province has set for moving beyond Step 3 of its reopening plan has now been met.

The government has also said 75 per cent of people 12 and older must have received their second dose, and no public health unit can have less than 70 per cent of eligible people fully vaccinated.

Elliott says other key health indicators must also be stable.