As hospitalizations reach 2,594, Omicron wreaks havoc on Ontario

Key takeaways:

• Ontario confirmed 13,362 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, though the true number is likely higher because most people in the province lack access to PCR testing.
• The number of people admitted to hospitals due to the virus continues to rise, reaching a new pandemic high of 2,594 on Saturday, up from 2,472 on Friday.

On Saturday, Ontario confirmed 13,362 fresh COVID-19 cases, though the true number is likely higher because most people in the province don’t have access to PCR testing.

However, as many infectious disease experts have pointed out, hospitalizations are the more important number to watch. The number of people admitted to hospitals due to the virus continues to rise, reaching a new pandemic high of 2,594 on Saturday, up from 2,472 on Friday.

While still not as crowded as they were throughout the third wave of the pandemic (900), intensive care units are now treating 385 patients, up from 338 on Friday.

Also read: COVID hospitalizations that occur by chance will be identified soon in Ontario

On Saturday, the provincial government announced that more vaccination clinics would be opened to provide “accelerated access to COVID-19 booster shots” to educators and child care workers.

Toronto, Richmond Hill, Mississauga, Vaughan, Pickering, Hamilton, Oakville, and Brampton are ten new clinics.

Appointments for education and child care staff are being held at a clinic run by the Toronto Zoo between 4 and 10 p.m. They also have access to weekend appointments that are protected.

Eligible individuals can make a reservation on this website as early as Saturday.

The government also reiterated its efforts to get more rapid-antigen tests ready to come back to in-person learning, which could happen as soon as January 17.

From the Ministry of Health’s daily provincial update, here are some more key pandemic indicators and figures:

55,700 tests have been completed.

Although fewer tests were completed, the province’s test positivity rate reached a single-day high of 30.6 percent, up from 26.6 percent on Friday.

There are 136,548 active cases.

385 patients were admitted to the ICU with COVID-related illnesses, with 219 requiring a ventilator to breathe.

31 people have died, bringing the total number of people killed to 10,345.

On Friday, 184,101 doses of vaccine were given out. The province has given out 28,324,152 doses so far. Currently, 91.1 percent of Ontarians aged 12 and up have received one vaccine dose, with 88.4 percent receiving two.

Source: CBC News

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