Active COVID-19 cases continue to decline in Alberta.
As of Monday, there were 11,096 active cases which is a drop of 827 from Sunday’s data.
Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw says a total of 456 people tested positive for the virus over the past day for a provincial positivity rate of 5.6 percent.
She says “our positivity rate is declining but it’s still far above the 1-3 percent we saw for most of the summer and fall. Numbers fluctuate on a daily basis, but we continue to see an overall decline in our testing numbers from last month.”
Hinshaw says the decline in testing may be due to fewer people feeling sick, however, she’s reminding anyone who may be experiencing symptoms to book a test.
A total of 17 fatalities were reported to Alberta Health Services in the past day. One is said to be a woman in her 80s with comorbidities linked to the outbreak at St. Therese – St. Paul Healthcare Centre.
3 people have died of the virus in St. Paul according to online data.
Health Minister Tyler Shandro also issued a statement Tuesday afternoon on the latest changes in the amount of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine coming to Canada.
He says “I am extremely concerned by the announcement that Pfizer is even further decreasing the amount of COVID-19 vaccine coming to Canada from its factory in Belgium, with no doses expected to arrive next week and further anticipated reductions in the two weeks following. With fewer vaccines arriving, we have no choice but to focus on delivering second doses for those who have already been vaccinated. All new first dose appointments for eligible health-care workers are being postponed. Some second dose appointments will also need to be rescheduled in the coming weeks.”
As of Jan. 18, Alberta had administered 92,315 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Written by Tina Karst, MyLethbridgeNow.com