Today, the number of COVID-19 patients in Ontario intensive care units fell to 193, with six additional deaths added to the province’s total.
The total number of COVID-19 patients hospitalized in Ontario is now 615, down from 717 the week before.
According to provincial health officials, the number of COVID-19 patients treated in the ICU has decreased from 238 last Friday to 193 today.
The province said 45 per cent of COVID-19 patients currently hospitalized were admitted due to the virus, while 55 per cent were hospitalized for other reasons.
In the ICU, 79 per cent were admitted due to COVID-19 while 21 per cent were admitted for other reasons.
Ten more virus-related deaths were confirmed today, including two that occurred more than a month ago. But four deaths were removed from the overall total, bringing the province’s cumulative death toll to 12,313.
Another 2,502 new cases were confirmed by provincial labs today but that number is not an accurate reflection of the true burden of infection in the province due to significant restrictions on testing.
With 14,198 tests processed over the past 24 hours, officials are reporting a provincewide positivity rate of 12.9 per cent.
On Thursday, members of Ontario’s Science Advisory Table released new modelling indicating that a moderate rebound in hospital admissions due to COVID-19 is likely between now and May.
Modellers said that available surveillance suggests the Omicron wave has hit bottom and cases are starting to trend back upwards.
On Monday, the province will lift mask mandates in most public settings, including retail stores, restaurants, gyms, and movie theatres. On Friday, the city also released a list of locations where masks will no longer be required.
Source_ The Canadian Press
