Active COVID-19 cases back below 100 in Medicine Hat

There are 1,828 new cases in the province today.

Alberta has had 64,851 total cases over the course of the pandemic.

There are now 533 Albertans in hospital with COVID-19, 99 of which are in ICU, and 590 deaths.

The province completed 17,186 tests in the past 24 hours.

The provincial positivity rate is about 10.5 per cent.

“This positivity rate is a grim milestone and one that should concern us all,” said Dr. Deena Hinshaw, who stressed the seriousness of the rising case numbers and the importance of reducing the spread.

She said millions of Albertans have risen to the challenge of limiting the spread and supporting each other, calling them the majority in the province and asking them to keep doing what they’ve been doing.

“If you have not been following the rules, or if you know that your behaviour could be safer, this is the time to change it,” said the chief medical officer of health.

Before Hinshaw spoke, Alberta Health Services’ CEO said they are working to bolster its contact tracing teams.

Dr. Verna Yiu said the aim is to double the more than 900 contact tracers currently in the province by the end of 2020.

Last month the province changed contact tracing for past cases due to a growing backlog.

Yiu also said AHS is creating low-acuity inpatient mobile medical units in Calgary and Edmonton.

“While there is not a current need, it is clear that Alberta’s health-care system is under significant stress given the increasing numbers of COVID-19 cases in the province and AHS must prepare for all scenarios,” said Yiu.

Yiu said the plan is part of AHS’ ongoing, proactive pandemic response planning and is one of several initiatives to ensure the health-care system can meet growing demand caused by COVID-19.

Planning work is underway for staffing the potential units, said Yiu.

Medicine Hat remains on the provincial “Watch” list and is in enhanced status. In enhanced status, risk levels require enhanced public health measures to control the spread and are informed by local context.

Regions are placed on the province’s “Watch” list when they have a rate of more than 50 active cases per 100,000 population. Medicine Hat’s 101 active cases among 68,057 people puts it at a rate of 142.5.

Cypress County with a rate of 107 on 12 active cases and the County of Forty Mile with a rate of 263.8 on 17 active cases are also on the list.

Brooks (129.6 rate), the County of Newell (234.8), Lethbridge (239.4) Lethbridge County (265.6) and the MD of Taber (397.6) are also on the list.

All those regions are also in enhanced status.

There are 4,088 cases in the South Zone. There are 630 active cases and 3,411 recovered. There are 19 COVID-19 patients in hospital, five of which are in ICU. The death total in the zone is at 47.

On Thursday, an AHS spokesperson told CHAT News Medicine Hat Regional Hospital has six patients with two of those in ICU. Chinook Regional Hospital has eight, with three of those in ICU.

On Friday there are 221 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.

In the city, Medicine Hat High School and Prairie Mennonite Alternative School are listed as having outbreaks.

The website Support Our Students is tracking instances of cases in schools across the province.

Cypress County has totaled 121 cases – 12 active cases and the rest recovered.

The County of Forty Mile has 112 total cases. There are 17 active cases, 94 recovered and there has been one death.

The MD of Taber has 263 total cases — 75 active cases, 184 recovered and there have been four deaths.

Special Areas No. 2 has 24 total cases – six active and the rest recovered.

Brooks has 1,289 total cases — 25 active and 1,250 are recovered. Brooks has recorded 14 deaths.

The County of Newell has a total of 114 cases — 19 active cases, 93 recovered and there have been two deaths.

The County of Warner has 129 total cases. There are 31 active cases, 96 are recovered cases and there have been two deaths in the county.

The City of Lethbridge has a total of 1,094 cases. There are 237 active cases, 850 recovered and there have been seven deaths. Lethbridge County has 348 cases, 67 active cases, 279 recovered and there have been two deaths.

The figures on alberta.ca are “up-to-date as of end of day Dec. 3, 2020.”

Read the full Dec. 4 update from the province here.

Saskatchewan confirmed 283 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, 30 in the South Zones.

Saskatchewan has a total of 9,527 cases, 4,116 considered active. There are 5,356 recovered cases and there have been 55 COVID-19 deaths in the province.

by Chris Brown

Active COVID-19 cases back below 100 in Medicine Hat

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