Ontario reports 928 new COVID-19 cases ahead of science table's latest modelling
CBC
Ontario reported 928 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, ahead of the release of new modelling from the province's science advisory table.
Ontario's chief medical officer of health is also scheduled to provide an update at 1:30 p.m. ET on the COVID-19 situation, in addition to his regular Thursday briefing. You will be able to watch it live in this story.
Dr. Kieran Moore will likely face questions about the omicron variant, with at least 13 cases detected so far in the province and the London area health unit investigating a potential cluster of 30 cases.
Toronto Public Health officials also said late Monday they are investigating the city's first school-based case of the variant, at Precious Blood Catholic School.
WATCH | No way to further loosen restrictions in face of omicron variant, science advisor says:
Ontario's seven-day average of daily new cases is up to 975, a level not seen since the decline of the third wave in early June and nearly a 23 per cent increase of last Tuesday.
Meanwhile, today's case count is a 35 per cent jump from the same time last week.
Officials have said a rise in cases this fall and winter was expected, as the weather gets colder and more activities move indoors.
Some local public health units have imposed stricter rules in recent days in response to growth in transmission of the virus. Chatham-Kent Public Health was the latest to announce tighter restrictions, set to take effect Friday. The changes include lower capacity limits for indoor gatherings, with the exception of weddings, funerals and religious services. Those events must, however, ensure that capacity is limited to a number that allows for physical distancing.
The science advisory table's last modelling, released Nov. 12, didn't make daily case count projections, saying the immediate future was uncertain, though a rise in ICU occupancy since then has been in line with their predictions.
As of Monday, there were 340 people hospitalized with COVID-19, the most since Sept. 16. Of those, 165 were being treated in intensive care units, down from 168 the day before.
According to Critical Care Services Ontario, 13 more adults were admitted to ICUs yesterday and the seven-day average of COVID patients in ICUs stands at 156.
The Ministry of Health also reported the deaths of nine more people with the illness, pushing the official toll to 10,036.
Here are some other key pandemic indicators and figures from the ministry's daily provincial update:
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