Eight active COVID-19 cases in Medicine Hat

The total number of COVID-19 cases across the province stands at 16,274. There are 1,483 active cases, down 12 from Wednesday, and 14,573 recovered cases, up 194.

There are currently 41 Albertans in hospital, eight in ICU. There have been 254 deaths.

The province conducted 13,003 tests in the past 24 hours.

Alberta is facing a challenge in the coming winter months, said Dr. Deena Hinshaw, and testing is being shifted to a more targeted approach.

“We will continue testing any Albertan with symptoms, while targeting asymptomatic testing for those who most need it and where it is most likely to identify positive cases,” she said. “This is the best way to limit the spread of COVID-19 and to protect the health of Albertans during the winter and flu season.”

Anyone with symptoms, any close contacts of a confirmed case and anyone liked to an outbreak will continue to be tested

Asymptomatic testing and those with no known exposure will continue to be offered to priority groups. Those include residents and staff in congregate settings, health-care workers, school teachers and staff and homeless people.

“Asymptomatic testing is no longer recommended for other Albertans who have no symptoms and have no known exposure to COVID-19,” said Hinshaw.

Hinshaw said that Alberta and every other province in Canada must prepare for a surging demand for tests this winter.

With cold and flu symptoms being similar to those of COVID-19 and people spending more time indoors and therefore in close contact, there will be an increase in the number of people needing to be tested, said the chief medical officer of health.

Hinshaw said she has discussed with her counterparts across the country the need for income support programs for parents who may need to stay home due to their own illness or one in their family.

She called it a critical question.

“Unless we’re able to support individuals who need to stay home either when they themselves are ill or if a child is ill, unless we can do that successfully we will not be able to stop COVID-19 from spreading,” she said.

Hinshaw began Thursday’s update by issuing a correction to previously reported numbers regarding the rate of positive tests among asymptomatic people and those with no known COVID exposure. She said it has yielded on average seven positive results per 10,000 people tested, not per 1,000 people tested as was reported.

She said that “emphasizes the fact that this testing is not contributing significantly to the new cases we are seeing.”

There are now 10 schools in the province where outbreaks have been declared. Alberta Health’s threshold for declaring an outbreak in school is two cases being in a school while infectious within 14 days.

One of those 10 schools, one – St. Wilfrid Elementary School in Calgary – is in the “Watch” classification, which means there are five or more cases.

No local schools are classified as having outbreaks on the provincial website.

The website Support Our Students is tracking instances of cases in schools across the province. The only local school on the list remains Ecole St. John Paul II, which was added in late August.

In the South Zone, there are 1,795 total cases. There are 38 active cases and 1,732 recovered. There are currently no COVID-19 cases in hospital in the South Zone and the zone total remains at 25 deaths.

Cypress County has totaled 31 cases – all recovered.

The County of Forty Mile has 28 total cases, six active cases and the rest recovered.

The MD of Taber has 40 total cases — one active case and the rest recovered.

Special Areas No. 2 has 13 total cases, all of which are recovered.

Brooks has 1,130 total cases —1,118 are recovered and three are active. Brooks has recorded nine deaths.

The County of Newell has a total of 32 cases — 30 recovered and there have been two deaths.

The County of Warner has 62 total cases. There are two active cases, 59 are recovered cases and there has been one death in the county.

The City of Lethbridge has a total of 169 cases. There are seven active cases, 160 recovered and there have been two deaths. Lethbridge County has 44 cases, seven active cases and the rest recovered.

The figures on alberta.ca are “up-to-date as of end of day Sept. 16, 2020.”

Read the full Sept. 17 update from the province here.

Saskatchewan reported seven new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, three in the South Zones.

Saskatchewan has a total of 1,757 cases, 109 considered active. There are 1,624 recovered cases and there have been 24 COVID-19 deaths in the province.

by Chris Brown

Eight active COVID-19 cases in Medicine Hat

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