3 more people in hospital due to COVID-19, N.L. to stay in Alert Level 4 at least another week

Three more people in Newfoundland and Labrador are in hospital due to COVID-19, raising the current number of hospitalizations to 15 — one short of the provincial record of 16, set Oct. 7.

The hospitalizations were announced in media release Monday, the same day the Health Department announced the province will stay in Alert Level 4 for at least another week.

The department said the decision to remain in Alert Level 4 was based on the current epidemiology of the province. Another reassessment and update is scheduled for Jan. 24.

During a briefing following the announcement, Health Minister John Haggie said the province has the lowest COVID-19 hospitalization rate in Canada, thanks in large part to a successful vaccination campaign.

"This has literally changed the face of the risk of hospitalization from Omicron, said Haggie. "That number is as low as it is thanks to everybody's hard work."

Many people who test positive for the virus are able to recover at home because of the vaccine's protection from severe illness, said the health minister. A small group of people in hospital are vaccinated, said Haggie, who said he couldn't give a breakdown because of privacy concerns.

The government reported 239 new cases of COVID-19 Monday, Public Health has restricted who gets tested for the virus and is struggling to keep up with processing the tests it does administer, making the daily case count less reliable as an indicator of COVID-19's spread.

Weighed against 416 recoveries, the province's known active caseload has dropped to 5,325.

The move to tighten public health restrictions came in early January as the coronavirus variant Omicron swept across the country and cases started spiking in Newfoundland and Labrador. When the move to Alert Level 4 was announced — on Jan. 3, taking effect the next day — the provincial government said it would reassess the decision two weeks later.

In the days following the holiday season and throughout most of January, the province has seen record daily cases reported, along with more deaths and hospitalizations.

With hospitalizations currently lower than the projected peak of between 20 and 30, Haggie said the province continues to walk a line of limiting spread while considering reopening some medical services in the coming days and weeks.

"As the opportunity presents itself, we're ready to open up to more planned services," he said.

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