COVID-19 UPDATE FOR APRIL 7: MORE THAN 230,000 VACCINES ADMINISTERED, 189 NEW CASES, 246 RECOVERIES, TWO NEW DEATHS

Vaccines Reported

An additional 6,738 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been given in Saskatchewan, bringing the total number of vaccines administered in the province to 234,209.

The 6,738 doses of COVID-19 vaccine reported today were administered to residents living in the following regions: Far North West (26), Far North Central (1), Far North East (47), North West (665), North Central (651), North East (57), Saskatoon (2,322), Central West (68), Central East (562), Regina (1,758), South West (140), South Central (117) and South East (166).  There were 158 doses administered with zone of residence pending.

Over 20,000 Saskatchewan residents in their 50s have now received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine:

The Ministry of Health has launched a new dashboard with details on vaccine administration in the province, including first and second doses administered by age range.  As the source database for vaccine information, Panorama is subject to continuous data updates which may result in revised counts, day over day.

The COVID-19 vaccine appointment booking system currently includes residents 58 years of age and older.  Eligible residents are encouraged to book their COVID-19 vaccinations online or by phone.  Additional information on how to book your appointment is available at www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-vaccine-booking.  For information on drive-thru clinics, see https://www.saskhealthauthority.ca/news/service-alerts-emergency-events/Pages/COVID-19-Vaccine-Drive-Thru-Wait-Times.aspx.

Daily COVID-19 Statistics

There are 189 new cases of COVID-19 to report in Saskatchewan on April 7, bringing the provincial total to 35,171 cases. Saskatchewan’s COVID-19 Dashboard can be found here.

There are two new deaths to report today.  One death was reported in the 30-39 age group from the North Central zone.  One death was reported in the 80+ age group from the Regina zone.

The new cases are located in the Far North West (4), North West (9), North Central (3), Saskatoon (43), Central East (12), Regina (74), South West (3), South Central (15), and South East (23) zones.  Three (3) new cases have pending residence information.  One case with pending residence information has been assigned to the Regina zone.  Two (2) cases where Saskatchewan residents were tested out-of-province have been added to the Far North East zone.  There are a total of 32,588 recoveries and 2,138 cases are considered active.

Two hundred and one (201) people are in hospital.  One hundred and fifty-nine (159) people are receiving inpatient care: Far North West (2), Far North East (1), North West (9), North Central (3), Saskatoon (42), Central East (17), Regina (76), South Central (1) and South East (8).  Forty-two (42) people are in intensive care: North Central (4), Saskatoon (6), Central East (2), Regina (27) and South Central (3).

The seven-day average of daily new cases is 226 (18.4 new cases per 100,000).  A chart comparing today’s average to data collected over the past several months is available on the Government of Saskatchewan website at https://dashboard.saskatchewan.ca/health-wellness/covid-19/seven-day-average-of-new-covid-cases.

There were 3,122 COVID-19 tests processed in Saskatchewan on April 6, 2021.

To date, 690,450 COVID-19 tests have been processed in Saskatchewan.  As of April 5, 2021, when other provincial and national numbers were available, Saskatchewan’s per capita rate was 578,979 tests performed per million population.  The national rate was 746,323 tests performed per million population.

As of April 7, 2,830 variants of concern have been identified by screening in Saskatchewan, reported in the Far North West (2), Far North East (4) North West (6), North Central (19), Saskatoon (178), Central West (12), Central East (60), Regina (1,986), South West (14), South Central (245) and South East (232) zones.  There are 72 cases with area of residence pending.

These were previously reported as “presumptive positives” but all screening tests will be considered confirmed VOCs for the purposes of public reporting and contact investigations.

There are zero (0) new lineage results being reported today.  Of the 951 VOCs with lineages identified by whole genome sequencing in Saskatchewan, 943 are B.1.1.1.7 (UK) and eight are B.1.351 (SA).  The Regina zone accounts for 802 (84 per cent) of the VOC cases with confirmed lineage reported in Saskatchewan.

Please note that these VOC may have been initially identified via means other than screening (i.e. selection for whole genome sequencing without screening) and that whole genome sequencing results to identify lineage are included in the screening results.

Confirmed variant of concern cases may appear in both columns on the website, depending on testing for that case.  Adding the cases identified by screening and those that have received whole genome sequencing may result in double-counting individual cases.

Further statistics on the total number of cases among healthcare workers, breakdowns of total cases by source of infection, age, sex and region, total tests to date, per capita testing rate and current numbers of confirmed variants of concern can be found at
http://www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-cases.

All Public Health Measures Extended to April 26

The Chief Medical Health Officer is extending the provincial public health orders announced Tuesday, March 9 and the Regina and area revisions announced Tuesday, March 24.

The orders will now remain in effect until April 26, 2021 and be reviewed at that time.

Due to increased COVID-19 transmission risk in Regina and area, revisions were made March 24 including: restricting private indoor gatherings to immediate household members only; all restaurants and licensed establishments must close for in-person dining; and most event venues supporting 30 persons or less are not permitted to operate.

Travel is also not recommended in or out of the Regina area unless absolutely necessary.  It is strongly recommended that all individuals in the Regina area able to work from home do so.

Full details on current public health measures can be found at www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-measures.

Please note: Variants of concern (VOC) are beginning to rise across southern Saskatchewan, particularly in the Moose Jaw and Weyburn areas.  Residents in these areas are urged to adhere to best personal protective measures:

• Wear your mask in all public places including all workplaces
• Wash non-medical masks daily
• Maintain physical distancing
• Wash your hands frequently
• Reduce activities outside of your home.  Order take-out or curbside pick-up.  If you are able to work from home, work from home at this time.
• Avoid all unnecessary travel to and from Moose Jaw and Weyburn.

All Saskatchewan residents should monitor active cases in their area and adjust their activity accordingly.  Active and new case information for each area can be found at https://dashboard.saskatchewan.ca/health-wellness.

If you have any symptoms, stay home and arrange for a COVID-19 test.  If anyone in your home has symptoms, the entire household should remain home until the test results are known.  Testing information is available at www.saskatchewan.ca/government/health-care-administration-and-provider-resources/treatment-procedures-and-guidelines/emerging-public-health-issues/2019-novel-coronavirus/testing-information.

General COVID-19 Information

General public inquiries may be directed to [email protected].

Know your risk.  Keep yourself and others safe.  www.saskatchewan.ca/government/health-care-administration-and-provider-resources/treatment-procedures-and-guidelines/emerging-public-health-issues/2019-novel-coronavirus/about-covid-19/know-your-risk.

(Photo credit: Saskatchewan Government/Saskatchewan Government News Release)