Ontario reports fewer than 300 COVID-19 cases for third day straight, surpasses new vaccine milestone
Ontario has reported fewer than 300 new COVID-19 cases for the third day in a row as the province reaches a new vaccination milestone.
Health officials logged 255 infections on Wednesday, a number not seen since Sept. 15 when 251 cases were reported.
The new cases mark a significant decrease from the 296 infections reported Tuesday and the 270 infections on Monday.
The seven-day rolling average of daily COVID-19 cases now stands at about 316. A week ago that number was 443.
According to the province’s daily epidemiology report, Toronto and Waterloo logged the most new COVID-19 cases Wednesday with 57 and 53 infections respectively.
Other municipalities with case counts in the double digits include Peel Region (25), North Bay Parry Sound District (23), Ottawa (14), Niagara (11), and York Region (10).
With just over 27,360 COVID-19 tests processed in the last 24 hours, the Ministry of Health says the province’s positivity rate is now 1.2 per cent.
Another 11 deaths related to the disease were reported on Wednesday, bringing the death tally related to the virus to 9,093.
According to data from local public health units and hospitals, there are at least 816 people being treated for COVID-19 in Ontario hospitals.
At the same time, there are 305 people in intensive case, with 190 people breathing with the assistance of a ventilator according to the Ministry of Health.
The total number of lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases in Ontario now stands at 543,019, including deaths and recoveries.
The province has identified 56 new Delta variant cases in lab-confirmed COVID-19 tests, bringing the total to 975.
In total, officials have identified 142,647 cases of the Alpha variant, 1,154 cases of the Beta variant and 4,263 cases of the Gamma variant.
MORE THAN 25% OF ONTARIANS FULLY VACCINATED
On Wednesday, Ontario Health Minister Christine Elliott said on social media that the province has reached a new milestone with more than a quarter of adults over the age of 18 fully vaccinated with two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine.
According to provincial data, more than 3.3 million people have received two doses of a vaccine. In the last 24-hour period, the province administered 227,318 doses of COVID-19 vaccine.
Ontario is currently in Step 1 of its reopening plan, which allows for most outdoor activities and patios to resume operation. The province is scheduled to move to Step 2 on July 2, although health officials have said the transition may occur a few days ahead of deadline.
The push for an earlier reopening is due to the declining trends in case counts and hospitalizations, as well as the acceleration of vaccinations in the province. One of the thresholds the government said it had to meet in order to continue to the final step of its reopening plan was for at least 25 per cent of the population to be fully vaccinated.
According to the government, the province has now surpassed that goal.
Background
The numbers used in this story are found in the Ontario Ministry of Health's COVID-19 Daily Epidemiologic Summary. The number of cases for any city or region may differ slightly from what is reported by the province, because local units report figures at different times.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.