Ontario reports 1,185 new COVID cases Tuesday

Public Health Ontario has reported 1,185 new cases of COVID-19 today (March 9).

Today's report includes 972 recoveries and six new deaths, none were long-term care residents.

The deaths reported today include one person between 40 and 59 years old, two people between 60 and 79 years old, and three people aged 80 or older.

The province has reported 44 new hospitalizations since yesterday, and five new admissions of COVID-19 patients to intensive care units.

The March 9 update provided by the province's public health agency also reported the following data:

• 11,223 active cases, which is up from 11,016 yesterday
• 689 people are currently hospitalized with COVID-19 in Ontario, up from 626 reported yesterday. 
• There are 290 COVID patients in intensive care units (up from 282) and 184 COVID patients on ventilators (even with yesterday)
• The province reported 33,264 tests were processed yesterday resulting in a 3.7 per cent positivity rate.
• Another 29,845 tests are still under investigation and/or being processed. To date, 11.4 million tests have been completed.
• Of the 1,185 new cases reported today, 343 are from Toronto, 235 cases are from Peel, 105 are from York Region, and 30 are from Simcoe-Muskoka
• There are 75 active outbreaks at long-term care homes, 56 at retirement homes, and 22 at hospitals. 
• The new cases reported today include 250 individuals aged 19 and under, 475 people between 20 and 39 years old, 293 people between 40 and 59 years old, 150 people between 60 and 79 years old, and 22 people aged 80 and over.

Variants of concern (Ontario-wide)

• 908  lab-confirmed cases of the UK variant strain of COVID-19 (B.1.1.7). 
• 39 cases of B.1.351 (also known as the South African variant).
• 17 cases of P.1, which is the variant strain that originated in Brazil. 
• According to Public Health Ontario, there are delays between specimen collection and the testing required to confirm a variant of concern. As such, the reports can change and can differ from past case counts publicly reported.

Vaccines

• There were 31,047 doses of vaccines against COVID-19 administered on March 8, which is up from 21,882 administered on Mar. 7. 
• As of 8 p.m. on March 8, the province reported 943,533 doses of vaccine against COVID-19 have been administered.
• In total, 276,193 people have been fully vaccinated.

Public Health Ontario has confirmed 311,112 cases of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic, and reported 292,806 recoveries and 7,083 deaths, of which 3,876 were individuals living in long-term care homes.

The cumulative average incidence rate in the province is 2,093 cases per 100,000 people in Ontario.

The weekly incidence rate in Ontario is 51.9 cases per 100,000 people, which is an increase of one per cent from last week (Feb. 21-27). 

In Northern Ontario, the breakdown of Public Health Ontario data is:

• Algoma Public Health: 200 cases, rate of 174.8 per 100,000 people. There are five known active cases. The region is in the yellow - protect zone.
• North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit: 269 cases, rate of 207.3 per 100,000 people. There are five known active cases. There are two confirmed cases of the United Kingdom (B.1.1.7) variant, and 20 confirmed cases of the South African (B.1.351) variant of concern. The region is in the red - control zone.
• Porcupine Health Unit: 342 cases, rate of 409.9 per 100,000 people. There are four known active cases. The region is in the orange - restrict zone.
• Public Health Sudbury and Districts: 815 cases, rate of 409.5 per 100,000 people. The health unit has reported 818 cases. There are 204 known active cases. There are three confirmed variants of concern (VOC) cases, both are the UK (B.1.1.7) strain. The region is in the red zone.
• Timiskaming Health Unit: 105 cases, rate of 321.2 per 100,000 people. The health unit has reported 106 cases. There are 11 known active cases. There is one confirmed case of the South African (B.1.351) variant of concern. The region is in the orange - restrict zone.
• Northwestern Health Unit: 523 cases, rate of 596.5 per 100,000 people. The health unit has reported 525 confirmed cases. There are 59 known active cases. There is one confirmed case of the UK (B.1.1.7) variant. The region is in the yellow - protect zone.
• Thunder Bay District Health Unit: 2,041 cases, rate of 1,361 per 100,000 people.  The health unit has reported 2,024 cases, There are 462 known active cases. The region is in the grey - lockdown level.