Dr. Deena Hinshaw to deliver update on Omicron in Alberta

Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta's chief medical officer of health, will update Albertans on the spread of COVID-19 and efforts to clamp down on the spread of the Omicron variant.

Hinshaw will speak at 3:30 p.m. MT. You can watch the news conference here.

The total number of Omicron cases in Alberta has soared and it is now considered to be the dominant strain in the province.

Transmission of the new strain has escalated daily case counts in the province to levels not seen for months.

As of Wednesday, a total of  2,131 cases of the more transmissible strain had been detected in the province, up from 1,609 in Tuesday's update.

Alberta reported a total of 1,346 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday —  the highest daily case total since October and nearly double the previous day's total. 

Across the province there are now 7,065 total active cases of COVID-19, up from 6,045 on Tuesday. Calgary once again leads the province with 3,887 active cases in the region. 

As of Wednesday, 326 people were in hospital with COVID-19, including 65 in intensive care. 

Since the start of the pandemic, a total of 3,299 Albertans have died of COVID. Five new deaths were reported Wednesday.

On Tuesday, in a bid to clamp down on the spread of Omicron, Alberta introduced new public health restrictions while expanding rapid testing and third dose vaccinations. 

At the time, Hinshaw warned that the variant case count is doubling every two to three days and the impact on frontline healthcare could soon be severe if transmission rates remain unchanged.